


Shifting Tides

by Madam_Chauncey



Category: Kingdom Hearts
Genre: Alternate Universe, But she has good reason, Character Study, F/M, Friendship/Love, Jealousy, Kairi is kind of jaded, Slow Burn, Trust Issues
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-05
Updated: 2019-08-24
Packaged: 2020-02-26 01:53:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 63,441
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18714124
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Madam_Chauncey/pseuds/Madam_Chauncey
Summary: In a last ditch effort to put the past six years with Vanitas behind her, Kairi relocates to the scenic Destiny Islands. There she meets Sora, a cheerful local fisherman who brings her into his tight-knit inner circle without hesitation. Out of all her new friendships, his burrows the deepest into her heart, initiating a war between the future she secretly yearns for and the past she hasn't entirely let go of.





	1. Chapter 1

 

It was an odd feeling, the salty sea air sweeping her face as she sailed from the large island to the moderately populated archipelago of Destiny Island. She was definitely a city girl, though didn't consider herself overly attached to the bustle; however, this was still a big departure from what she was used to.

The ferry she was on was sturdy and well-sized; it wasn't like she feared being hurled into the ocean. But this was a new beginning for her, and she found herself nervous to move to an entirely new community where she knew no one.

Kairi Hart had needed a change, so she answered the online listing for a kindergarten teacher and submitted her resume. Teaching small children was her passion and she wasn't foolish enough to relocate without a job securely in place—she gave no indication to her principal in Radiant Garden or landlord until she was sure Destiny would work out in that regard.

Kairi was surprised when she got a return call the very next day and interviewed over the phone. She was even more surprised when their principal, a Ms. Aerith Gainsborough, hired her immediately afterward. Truthfully, her job at Radiant Garden took persistence and she landed it right out of college, so maybe she wasn't the foremost authority, but it seemed hasty.

"We desperately need a teacher to fill this position, Ms. Hart. You're the best applicant we've had and I see no point in making you wait for week while I pretend to shuffle through anyone else." Ms. Gainsborough had told her as if reading her mind.

Kairi wasn't going to look a gift horse in the mouth, either. The small apartment she had waiting for her came soon after, as did her goodbyes.

Truthfully, her grandmother, sister, and brother-in-law were the ones she hated leaving most. But there were too many  _other_ memories embedded around Radiant Garden; she needed to live somewhere she wasn't constantly reminded of certain times, certain  _people_. This was her chance to purge some of the old ghosts she had trailing behind her.

"All ashore!" the ferry captain called, breaking Kairi from her thoughts. She hadn't even noticed they had arrived. They had docked at the modest island harbor. Destiny was made up of 2 islands. One was the one she stood on; the main harbor where a cozy set of modest, homey island hotels decorated the well-tucked away tourist spot. The other was just another short ferry ride away where her apartment and new job awaited. It was relatively large as you went further into the center of the island, but she would be living very close to the ocean in a small community tucked away near the bay.

Kairi grabbed the two duffel bags she fit the entirety of her new world into and disembarked along with about a dozen others. She tottered onto the dock, her legs feeling a bit wobbly after the nearly hour long ride on what was essentially a bobbing cork in the ocean.

The strong breeze from the ocean had mussed her short red hair and she tried to push some behind her ear, to less than stellar results. She was truly tired; she was planning on grabbing a bite from one of the resort restaurants and taking a ferry to the residential island ASAP.

After she walked down the dock steps and her sneakers made contact with the warm sand of the beach, her still recovering jellified legs tried to pull her and her luggage across the sand.

Just as she was starting to get her bearings once more, an unidentified blur raced past her, clipping her and knocking her down and onto the ground.

Sand was slung into the air as the blur stopped on a dime and Kairi found herself staring up at the baby blue island sky as the hit knocked the ground from under her feet and she dropped her bags.

Dazed, she barely registered a man with deep blue eyes and spiky brown hair eclipsing everything else as he hovered over her.

"Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry, Miss. I wasn't paying attention to where I was going."

Kairi blinked a few times as her head stopped swimming from the sudden hard impact with the ground.

She felt more than she saw a large, gentle, but calloused hand find hers in the sand where she dropped her bags. The owner pulled her smoothly to her feet and gathered up her belongings in his other hand.

He turned to her, face flushed with embarrassment and leaned in close, eyes roving over her as if inspecting her. "Are you hurt at all? I can't believe I did something so careless."

Kairi finally got a good look at him. He looked around her age, his blue eyes shining in concern as finally let go of her hand to run his fingers nervously through his brown spikes.

"I-I'm f-fine. Just a little disoriented. Fresh off the ferry. Don't have the best sea legs, truthfully." she admitted. "I probably would have ended up losing my balance anyway."

The man scowled. "Don't let me off the hook that easily. Should have never came barreling through like that. Let me make it up to you, Miss…" he trailed off expectantly, obviously waiting for her to fill in the blank for her name.

"Kairi." she supplied. "Kairi Hart."

The brunette smiled, and she was taken aback by how boyish and bright it was. "Sora Strife. It's good to see a new face. Are you vacationing at one of the resorts? Can I walk you? If you haven't eaten I know a place where you can get the  _best_  hot ham and cheese melt of your life."

His unabashed, helpful nature concerned her. Were all islander guys this forward? He had knocked her onto the sand. At best, she figured she'd get a hurried apology, but this Sora Strife was offering to carry her things and take her to dinner.

"O-oh, that's totally not needed, really. I'm actually moving here. My apartment is on the residential part of the island straight over there."

Sora didn't miss a beat, beaming at her. "Oh? I live on the other island, too. Now that I think about it, I believe I've heard your name come up before. You must be the new kindergarten teacher."

Kairi was truly surprised. She'd barely told him her name and he was already on the nose.

She must not have done a very adequate job of hiding how taken aback she was. "Small island. News travels fast." he told her.

She worried her bottom lip with her teeth. She honestly couldn't get a good read on this guy. Sure, he seemed nice. Very nice, actually. She also knew that men who were especially good at the nice guy routine were often wielding charm to cover up something darker.

And his _face_. It favored  _his_  in subtle ways. She had noticed it earlier; she wasn't sure if she could stomach his company.

Sora jerked his head in the direction of the large island just another ferry ride away. "C'mon. Let's get your bags to your apartment and then I'll take you for that melt. Who wants to be alone for their first meal in a new place?"

As much as Kairi wanted to, she couldn't penetrate that argument. He at least seemed harmless, even if she couldn't figure out his motivations for being so generous to a perfect stranger. Plus, it wasn't like she knew her way around the big island. It was getting late and she didn't know the kind of people that lived here—maybe it was best to let Sora have his way; at least she knew she wouldn't be in any danger.

Their ride together on the vessel was quiet and uneventful. Perhaps he had gotten the hint that she wasn't near as enthused about their plans as he was, because he didn't press her for conversation. The couple of times she tried to sneak a glance at him without him knowing, he would always catch her gaze and smile that megawatt smile.

Sora Strife was, in a word, unnerving.

As much as Kairi hated to admit it, his smile was infectious. It was difficult to maintain a deadpan expression when he looked at her like that.

However, when they disembarked at the dock for the larger residential island, he turned into quite the chatterbox, especially after she told him her address.

"That's not far from me or the school," he beamed. "This part of the island is so compact that most people just walk everywhere. The high school is about a twenty minute drive into the city; a lot of people just move to the mainland when their kids get that age. It's so quiet here teenagers get a little crazy."

He carried both her bags over his shoulder. Kairi just walked alongside him as he explained things about the tiny community nestled away on the coast.

"It is kind of sleepy here." she agreed.

Sora shifted her luggage to his other shoulder. "How about you? You like a lot of nightlife? There's really none here but there are a couple spots in the city you might like."

Kairi shook her head. "Not really. I think I'll like the quiet. Radiant Garden had enough bustle to last me a lifetime. I've never been much into the club scene."

"Radiant Garden? I went there on business once. It's a beautiful city. Everything in the world you could ever want is there."

Kairi felt wooden at the praise of her hometown. "You think you want it until you get it." she murmured.

Sora's smile disappeared and his deep blues turned wistful. "I guess everyplace has its good and bad parts, huh? Well, for what it's worth, I'm glad you ended up here. I hope you'll feel at home soon."

He seemed so sincere as that pesky smile of his returned full blast. It made her chest lurch. "T-thanks…"

After a fifteen minute walk from the docks filled with sparse conversation, they finally arrived at the two story apartment building she would be calling home from now on. Four small apartments were built on the front and back; two upstairs and two downstairs.

"I have to go to the office to get the key." Kairi told him. Sora nodded, following dutifully behind her to the attached office on the side of the building.

She pulled open the glass door and headed inside, finding a woman typing at a computer behind a dark, mahogany desk.

The bell attached to the top of the door rung as the pair entered and the woman looked up at the new arrivals. She smiled at them, immediately rising from her seat to greet them.

"Sora! It's so good to see you!"

Sora set her bags on the floor as the older woman crossed the room. She pecked him on the cheek and pulled him into a hearty embrace.

She pulled away and turned her attention to Kairi.

"And who is your pretty friend? Your mother must be thrilled you've finally—"

"Mrs. Emmy,  _please_." the brunette was nearly pleading and Kairi noticed just the hint of a flush on his cheeks. "You and mom know I'm—"

" _Very busy with work_. So you've said." Mrs. Emmy finished, and it seemed to Kairi that this was a conversation the pair had had many times before.

Kairi decided it was time for her to cut in. She was tired and the sooner she could send Sora away and unpack her bags, the better.

"I'm Kairi Hart." she informed the kindly lady. "I'm renting A4."

Realization visibly dawned on Mrs. Emmy. "Oh! Ms. Hart! It's so nice to meet you, dear. I didn't know you knew Sora."

"I don't, really." Kairi corrected her quickly. "We only just met at the resort docks."

Emmy walked back to her desk and retrieved her key from the drawer and dropped it into her palm with a smile.

"You better take care of her, Sora. Moving to a new place can be difficult so I'm trusting you to show her around."

Kairi wanted to interject that she was fully capable of taking care of herself, but the older woman meant well so she kept the thought to herself out of politeness. This woman was going to be her landlord; there was no benefit to getting off on the wrong foot with her.

"I'm trying to get her to join me at Wakka's."

Emmy gave her smile. "You should go, dear. Wakka's ham and cheese melt is  _delicious_."

What was with these people and this ham and cheese sandwich?

Kairi gave the woman a smile in spite of feeling overwhelmed by the both of them and their sunny dispositions. Not that she was a broody person herself, but she had never met people so accommodating in Radiant Garden.

Sora and Kairi bid farewell to Emmy and headed back outside and up to the second floor where A4 was situated.

She unlocked the door and finally walked into her new home. Sora entered behind her but didn't go past the threshold before he set her bags on the beige carpeted floor.

"This is really nice." he complimented.

There was a modest grey couch, a red armchair and a glass coffee table. The den gave way to the dining room where a thin wall blocked off the kitchen. There was a hallway that mostly likely led to the bedroom and bathroom.

The apartment came furnished. It seemed easier than trying to move her furniture from her home in Radiant Garden. She wasn't overly attached to things like that anyway. She lacked a television, but she could get that later. She didn't watch much T.V so it didn't seem pertinent.

"Thank you for everything, Sora." she turned to him to express her gratitude. She was still unsure about him, but as far as she can tell he seemed nice and he really did help her out.

He smiled at her, almost bashful. "Aww, don't mention it…" he paused for a moment. "I know you must be tired after your long trip and I know we just met, but you're still more than welcome to join me for dinner. I'd hate to think of you alone for your first meal on Destiny Islands."

Kairi had every intention the entire way here to send him off immediately once she got to her apartment. But truthfully she was pretty famished at this point and she didn't have a morsel of food here; she still had to go shopping for her currently empty pantry.

Wait, what was she saying? He was a total stranger. Nevermind that he seemed sweet and her landlord apparently adored him. No man was that sweet for no reason in her experience. For all she knew he was toying with her for some cruel joke. Sure, he had apologized profusely for his clumsiness earlier, walked her all the way here from the resort docks carrying her luggage, and had the most  _gorgeous_  smile she'd ever seen, but so what? Letting this man she barely knew carry her off to some mysterious dive on an island she didn't know her way around yet would be incredibly dumb of her. There was no way she could agree to it.

Sora waited for her patiently, no pressure, blue eyes shining in the soft light of her new apartment. Just as she was going to open her mouth to politely decline, her stomach gave an alarmingly long growl that seemed to bounce of the walls of the sparsely decorated space.

Sora chuckled good naturedly. "I think that settles it."

Kairi was certain she had died from embarrassment on the spot.

* * *

 Wakka's Place was a small diner not far from her place. They sat at a cozy booth, the smell of coffee and various comfort foods wafting through the establishment.

Kairi skimmed the menu, mostly as an excuse to avoid conversation with Sora who sat across from her, his hands folded on the table. A few other patrons had come over to their table to greet Sora, and to each one of them he had to introduce her. She said the obligatory hellos but didn't add much to their conversations and the visitors would eventually make their way back to their own tables.

The waitress arrived shortly after to take their order. Kairi, who was still using the menu as a crutch but had yet to actually read it, stilted after Sora ordered the hot ham and cheese he had raved about for himself. She half expected him to order for the both of them as guys tended to do in these situations.

"You need more time?" he offered.

Kairi hastily ordered exactly what Sora had to save time and dignity and within five minutes they had two glasses of iced lemonade in front of them.

"So, a kindergarten teacher?"

Kairi made a hum of confirmation at his initiation of small talk.

"I bet you're excellent at what you do. You seem like you're good with small children."

The woman flushed a bit at the praise but found herself flustered at how casually he said things like that. He was an undeniable flirt, but he seemed totally oblivious to it. "How so?"

Sora shrugged. "You were awfully calm and patient with me after I nearly trampled you this afternoon. Which I'm still sorry about, by the way. Seems like good qualities for a teacher."

"I told you; it's fine, Sora. And I don't know how good I am at teaching, but I enjoy it."

"I don't think there is any way you couldn't be." he replied. Unsure of how to follow up yet another compliment from him, she focused her attention on drawing patterns in the condensation of her drinking glass to avoid his soft gaze.

"A dog stole my lunch, you know."

Kairi's eyes shot to him, perplexed.

"When I ran into you earlier, I was chasing a dog." he clarified, seeing her confusion. "It likes to hang around the dock. Actually, it usually isn't near the resort docks. Wonder if it took the ferry to follow me so it could run off with my lunch when I had turned my back..."

Kairi couldn't help the bubble of laughter that squeezed its way out of her at his confession. Sora was the picture of sheepishness until he finally joined in, the both of them mutual in their mirth until it came to a natural end.

He stirred his lemonade with his straw, the ice clinking in the glass, still sporting a grin at the silliness of his admission.

The waitress then returned with their meals on a large tray cradled in the crook of her arm. She was around their age, attractive, with brown hair and vibrant green eyes.

"This looks great. Thanks, Selphie."

Selphie set their plates down in front of them. "You're welcome." she answered listlessly.

Kairi's interest was piqued by the subtle interaction. This waitress was the first person Sora had spoken to all day that seemed unimpressed with him. She sensed there was some tense history there she wasn't privy to.

Selphie left and Sora began to dig into his sandwich without preamble.

Kairi looked down at her plate. She had to admit to herself that it looked and smelled great. The famished lurch in her stomach told her to follow suit. She took a tentative bite of the warm, slightly toasted sandwich, the smoky ham and sharpness of the cheddar making a more than pleasing combo on her palette that only got better as she chewed.

She swallowed her first bite and Sora smiled. "Good?"

"It's delicious." she admitted.

The both of them ate in comfortable silence for the duration of the meal. Sora finished first and was draining his glass of its remaining lemonade as she ate her last French fry served as a side.

"Dessert?" he asked.

Kairi declined. "I couldn't eat another bite."

Selphie then brought the check to the table. Kairi tried fishing her money out of her small, essentials-only purse, but Sora refused to let her pay.

"Please, I have to make up for earlier. I invited you, it's my treat." he insisted.

Kairi wasn't sure how comfortable she was with him paying for her dinner but he was adamant and she saw no way around it without causing a scene.

Afterwards, they stepped back out of the restaurant and onto the street. There was a nice breeze and their walk was well-lit by the streetlights.

The stars were blaringly bright and celestial looking above them. Kairi felt a wonder at how big and close they seemed.

"The stars here are so beautiful." she murmured aloud.

Sora hummed in agreement, hands in his pockets. "Is it not like this in Radiant Garden?"

Kairi shook her head. "Not really. They seem so small, almost starved. The sunsets are nice though."

The air between them now was a lot easier and lighter than it had been a couple hours ago; Kairi was grateful for that, at least.

The walk back to her building seemed shockingly shorter than it had been leaving. Sora walked her to her stoop, and she fingered her apartment key as the pair stood at he door. She was a bit unsure of how to say goodnight, which seemed absurd.

It almost felt like the end of a first date in some cheesy romantic comedy, but this was most certainly not a date.

Sora took the initiative to speak first, which she was grateful for.

"I'm really glad I met you today." he told her. "Thanks for coming with me; I enjoyed the company."

As begrudging as she had been about joining him earlier, she was glad she had.

"Me too," she agreed. "Thank you for your help and for dinner."

Sora smiled a little. "No prob. Well, goodnight, Kairi. I'll see you around."

Due to the fact that they were practically neighbors, she saw no way around that.

He turned from her, trudging down the building steps as she turned the key in her door, disappearing into the tranquility of her new home.

She closed the door, shuffling out of her shoes and trudging across the living room in her bare feet before sinking down into the sofa.

Sora Strife. How peculiar. She had a feeling relocating to The Destiny Islands would prove to be an upheaval for her in more ways than one.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kairi receives a special phone call and has an unexpected conversation over tea that changes her initial impression of Sora.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I usually don't finish and post new chapters this quickly, but I'm kinda excited about where this story is heading so I ended up getting it done quickly. Finally, we're past setting the foundation and have moved on to the basis of some central conflicts and more characters. There is also a chance the rating may change to M or even E at some point, but I haven't decided anything concrete yet.

Kairi awoke the next morning as the early pale, yellow sunlight streamed through her bedroom curtains. It was Saturday, but her biological clock always made sure she didn't oversleep even when she was able to.

Yesterday seemed almost surreal. She still found it hard to believe that she actually stuck to her guns and took the initiative to take the new job and relocation.

Of course, this tiny town on Destiny was calm, and she was almost grateful for that. She couldn't imagine how hard adjusting would be if she had decided on a place even larger than Radiant Garden.

Of course, it was still a foreign place to her, but she'd had some help. She wouldn't start at Destiny Elementary until Monday, but Sora had been thorough in his explanation on how to get there. It was roughly four blocks away, no big deal; Kairi could see the tip of the building from her living room window. She doubted it would be any trouble.

The young woman trudged to the small but comfortable bathroom. Her short red hair was especially unruly after all it had been through yesterday, and she wondered briefly with horror if it had looked as unfortunate last night while she had been out with Sora.

Then again, why did it matter?

She pulled back the curtain to her shower and turned it on, playing with the knobs until she got her desired water temperature. Steam began to swirl around the tiled room as Kairi shed her nightclothes.

Sora Strife.

She still couldn't get over how much like  _him_  he looked. That alone should have given Kairi every incentive in the world to give him a wide berth, yet that goofy smile of his had totally disarmed her. Mrs. Emmy seemed especially taken with him; nearly everyone they met yesterday had.

With the only exception being the waitress from Wakka's Place. Kairi wondered idly what the story there was, then laughed in spite of herself, musing why she cared at all about Sora and his relationships. She supposed everyone had a bit of a busybody dwelling deep within them, and being in such a small community it seemed the only thing of interest to do was keep an eye on your neighbors.

She stepped into the shower, letting the warm water cascade over her, the heat relieving some of tension in her shoulders and neck. Her bed was comfortable enough, albeit a little lumpy. Maybe she should invest in a new mattress at some point down the road when things were a little more settled; it took nearly all her funds to make the security deposit and first month's rent as well as the other expenses that came with moving.

Even though Kairi's departure seemed sudden, in reality she had been preparing for it before she was even certain she was going to take the leap. She honestly hadn't planned on moving to Destiny Islands—it just ended up being the most cost-effective place with a job that seemed tailor made for her. She suddenly realized the island's name held some truth, because the pieces had aligned so perfectly, it almost seemed like it _was_  destiny.

Even meeting Sora like she had seemed serendipitous.

She reached for her shampoo, and as the strawberry scented gel made contact with her wet hair its scent filled the tiny bathroom. Kairi lathered it onto her scalp, her own medium length nails massaging her into a state of calm despite the anxiety of waking up in a new place for the first time.

What was it about showers that were so cathartic? It was the best place to think, to face down problems, to relax…

To  _cry_. She'd done her fair share of that in the safety of her shower back in Radiant Garden, she remembered bitterly—but no more. She made a silent vow to herself right then, suds from her shampoo falling softly onto her collarbone, that there would be no more tears.

Not over  _him_ , not over her past, not even over anything that would happen to her on the Destiny Islands. She was going to take care of herself from now on. Her new students mattered, nothing else.

When she rinsed the shampoo from her hair and began to wash her body with her favorite sweet-smelling French-milled soap, she was also washing all the drama from her past back in Radiant Garden away, too. She made a solemn vow to remember and not repeat the same patterns and mistakes.

After completely rinsing, she shut the water off and retrieved a bath towel, lightly drying her hair and knotting the soft cotton around her chest. Her ears picked up on a faint buzzing noise from across the hall. Recognizing it as her phone, she quickly threw open the door and scrambled to her bedroom, grasping it with damp hands and answering it immediately without bothering to look at the caller ID.

Kairi pressed the phone to her ear, waiting.

"Kai? You there?"

She smiled wide, a genuine one for the first time since she arrived in Destiny, immediately knowing who the caller was.

"Xion! It's so good to hear your voice."

She heard a huff through the speakers on the other end. "Don't  _Xion_  me. What happened to calling me last night? You were supposed to let me know you'd gotten to your new apartment safely. You wouldn't believe the horrid things going through my mind all night."

Ohh. That's right.

Guilt washed over Kairi. In all the madness of yesterday she had completely forgotten to let her sister know she had arrived without incident.

"Oh, Xion I'm  _so_  sorry. After the two ferry rides and dinner with Sora, I was so exhaust—"

"Sora?" Xion promptly interrupted her excuse. "Who is Sora?"

Kairi immediately pressed her lips shut tight, realizing what she'd said, cursing her brain for not working fast enough to filter Sora out of the equation.

"He's nobody."

" _Kairi_ …" her sister murmured darkly, a warning. "Don't make me move to Destiny just so I can keep an eye on you."

Even though her sister couldn't see it, Kairi rolled her eyes. "Oh? Is Roxas okay with living separately from his wife or is he going to quit his job to move here?"

Xion clicked her tongue over the line. "He would one hundred percent move to Destiny if he thought you were in trouble and you know it. He loves you almost as much as I do, and if  _he_  heard you were about to have a rehash of Va—"

Kairi quickly cut her off. "Don't you dare tell my overprotective brother-in-law anything. Sora isn't rehash of anyone. He's just some clumsy guy I met when I got off the ferry. He felt bad for almost running me over at the dock and insisted on taking me to dinner to make up for it. End of story. Like I said, he's  _nobody_."

Xion groaned. "Kairi, I know you; you're too sweet and trusting for your own good. Promise me you'll be careful of this Sora person; he sounds like a creep."

Kairi gripped her phone tightly. "I told you, Xi, it's different now. I promised you I'd be careful and I meant it. Besides, Sora isn't a creep, he's just overly polite. Everyone on this island is, actually."

"Uh-huh."

"I'm serious, Xion." she pressed. "And beyond that I couldn't be less interested in some flirty islander guy right now. I'm going to have my hands full with 20 plus five-year olds in a couple days."

She heard Xion sigh. "Well, I'm trusting you, Kai. Please call me or Roxas if you need anything. Speaking of the devil, he's about to leave for work, so I better see him off."

"Give him a kiss for me, Xi. I love you both. Talk to you soon." Kairi felt her eyes get a little watery for some reason she couldn't comprehend. Those two and Gran were the only people that she regretted leaving behind, the only ones that gave her pause when she started to entertain the idea of relocating somewhere new.

She had been wary of Roxas when Xion had first introduced him to their family, but he quickly became one of them, like he was the missing piece that they didn't know they had been lacking. The couple married about a year ago and Kairi was honestly thrilled; Roxas had already become a brother to her and the marriage only served to make it legal. She was happy knowing that her sister was loved and taken care of; she wasn't sure if she could have left Radiant Garden otherwise.

"Love you too. I'll let Gran know you're settled in. I'm going to call you later, so you better pick up."

The call dropped after, and Kairi tossed her phone back onto the pillow, falling back across her bed with a sigh. She stared at the ceiling for a few minutes, realizing she could really use a cup of hot tea but had none in the apartment. She rose to her feet and went to her dresser where she had unpacked most of her clothes before she passed out the night before, searching for a suitable outfit.

Once she was dressed, she fixed her hair and left her apartment. The dew was still fresh in the air, giving it almost a sweet smell as she walked down the street. She was fairly certain she remembered the way well enough to get to Wakka's Place on her own. Even in the early morning the small coastal town was still relatively quiet. Kairi was so used to the rush of people on their morning commutes cluster jam of Radiant Garden early in the morning that it seemed like it was still in the middle of the night here.

She loved her sister; she really and truly did, but she was perturbed at Xion's concern if she was being honest. She found it endlessly irritating that the mere mention of Kairi  _meeting_ Sora had brought out that overbearing part of Xion's personality.

What, did she think just because Kairi was still licking her wounds from the dissolvement of a long-term relationship that she was going to fall into the arms of the first "aww shucks" islander boy that looked in her general direction? The idea was ludacris. She'd never been that way her entire life and she certainly didn't grow an affinity for it after  _him_. Even though he and Sora  _did_ bear a resemblance, it obviously ended at the physical level as far as she could tell.

Kairi was in recovery, and furthermore, she was  _not interested_  in Sora. The fact that Xion felt the need to "protect" her from falling into another relationship was infuriating enough, but then she'd had the gall to almost speak the one name that she'd been trying to get out of her system for two months.

Xion meant well, but she really had nothing to worry about. At worst, Sora was the type who used kindness as the golden ticket to get under a girl's skirt. At best, he was just a sweet guy who felt bad for the new girl in town. Even if he did belong to the former, he didn't seem like the dangerous variety that wouldn't take 'no' for an answer, which is exactly the answer that he would get if the subject was ever brought up. If he belonged to the latter, then she'd made her first friend on the island and Xion still had no reason to fuss over her. End of story.

Kairi spent so much time mulling over the conversation she'd had with her sister that the walk to Wakka's seemed shockingly short, because she was pulling the door open sooner than she anticipated.

The comfy diner apparently hadn't experienced the morning rush. Mostly the elderly were there, spottily seated throughout the booths and quietly eating breakfast. The man behind the counter smiled at her in acknowledgement as she walked through, and she took that as permission to sit at the table of her choice. For the sake of routine she sat down at the same booth she and Sora had shared the night before.

The large window right beside her filtered in golden morning light, and she looked through the fogged glass. The streets were mostly quiet, save for the occasional pedestrian or vehicle headed in the direction of the highway that led to the metropolitan part of Destiny at the end of a long drive. The entire island was considered Destiny, even though this quiet tucked away community seemed like a separate place entirely.

"What can I get you?" a polite voice chimed.

Kairi jerked from the surprise, zoned out in her thoughts as she had been.

The waitress from last night stood there with an accommodating smile on her face.

That is, until she saw Kairi's face. It was like someone had wiped the easy-going expression from her face and replaced it with grimace she was now faced with. The red-head's gaze immediately shifted to where the waitress's nametag was fastened to her shirt.

Selphie. That was what her name was. She remembered the quiet hostility she thought had been directed towards Sora last night, and realized it was very similar to the pall that had fallen between them just now.

Had she made a miscalculation? Had  _she_  been the reason for the tension between them?

Maybe Selphie was just naturally not the most personable. It seemed counterproductive for a waitress to not like people, so in afterthought Kairi figured that probably wasn't the case either.

Clearing her throat to break the thick block of awkwardness between them, Selphie poised her pen over her writing pad.

"Your order, miss?" she reiterated, a little less cheerfully this time.

Kairi fixed her expression—she felt like her eyebrows were knitted so tightly together in thought that they might fall off.

"Earl grey tea if you have it." she managed.

Selphie didn't bother writing the short order down.

"Anything else?"

Kairi shook her head. Selphie pocketed her pen and pad inside the apron knotted around her waist and crossed the room before disappearing behind two large doors that led to the kitchen.

Once she was out of eye and earshot Kairi let out a breath she wasn't aware she had been holding in.

Great. She'd potentially made one friend and one enemy within the span of one day. That had to be some sort of record. She wasn't sure what this Selphie's problem was; they knew nothing about each other—they'd only met once before today. Maybe coming here for tea had been a mistake. She was tempted to leap out of the booth that was beginning to feel more like a prison cell and make a b-line for the door, but morbid curiosity and maybe a streak of stubbornness kept her glued where she sat.

Kairi took a napkin from the holder and began to make dog-eared folds in the corners to occupy herself in the hopes that the gears in her head would stop turning. She took out her phone and checked the time. It was just after 8am. She took the opportunity to push out the numerous text and call notifications she'd received in vain from Xion last night after her adventures with Sora. She briefly debated pretending to take a call when Selphie returned from the kitchen with her tea in the hopes that they could avoid further awkward interaction.

But that stubborn part of her struck again.  _She_  was the one with the problem, why should Kairi be the one trying to keep the peace?

It was only a few more minutes before Kairi saw the woman in question blow through the fateful double doors with a tray, heading straight for her table.

Upon arrival, she set a cup of heavenly smelling black tea with cute little brass pitchers containing milk and sugar cubes, along with a slice of what looked like apple pie in front of Kairi. After setting the tray aside, Selphie boldly settled into Sora's seat from yesterday.

"The pie is on the house," she spoke, gesturing to the sweet, aromatic pastry, "and so is the advice I'm about to give you."

Kairi's mind was wiped clean at the cryptic line, so she decided to remain silent and let Selphie speak her piece, wary and intrigued in equal parts.

"I don't know who you are or how you met Sora, but from one woman to another, he's a lost cause."

Kairi, who had lifted the tea cup to her lips to take a drink, immediately froze. She waited a moment for Selphie to elaborate more than that. When she didn't, Kairi set the cup back down noisily on the saucer. The clank of the china might as well have been the gunshot that killed any hope for a calm conversation between them.

First Xion and now  _this_  girl? Why was everyone she spoke to today so concerned about her relationship—or lack thereof—with  _Sora_?

"Listen, I think there's some sort of misunderstanding here. I barely know him."

"You sure about that? You seemed pretty cozy with him last night."

Kairi felt immensely proud that she'd somehow refrained from rolling her eyes in front of Selphie. Was she  _serious_?

"Look, if he's yours, I promise you have nothing to worry about. I'm not interested, and the only kind of man who would flaunt his affair in front of his partner is either dumb or cruel, and I don't think Sora is either of those."

Selphie huffed. "We're  _not_  together… not anymore, at least. I gave him 3 months of my life before I realized it wasn't going anywhere. Sora is a serial dater. He lures you in with that nice boy bullshit, then you'll spend a few weeks doing things like watching sunsets together while holding hands before you realize that's all it'll ever be with him."

Kairi failed to see the part she was supposed to take issue with.

"Watching sunsets while holding hands? Is that frowned upon among islanders or something?"

Selphie crossed her arms. "Not exactly. But after three months of dating, the playground cheek-kissing gets old really fast."

Kairi traced the rim of her cup with her finger idly, not quite following. "What exactly are you trying to say? That he has commitment issues?"

The brunette across from her clicked her tongue. "I'm saying I don't think he's  _interested_."

Kairi bristled at the circular trajectory of this conversation. "I told you already, that's perfectly fine. We're not seeing each other, and I have no romantic—"

"—In women." Selphie continued her drivel like Kairi hadn't even spoken. "God, I was trying to have some tact here, but I don't think he's interested in  _women_."

 _Oh_.  _Ohhh_.

Kairi hadn't gotten that impression from Sora at all, but it wasn't like  _that_  was something people stamped across their foreheads for all to see. And even if he wasn't attracted to females, so what? It seemed incredibly disrespectful for Selphie to mention this to her: a complete stranger to his life until yesterday afternoon. This was something that should be relayed by Sora himself if true, and only if he wanted to.

"I'm not necessarily saying he bats for the other team, either, so get that judgmental look off your face." she continued, reading Kairi's incensed expression. "Maybe he does, maybe he doesn't. He lives with his best friend since high school and the two of them are close in a way I've never known two straight men to be. Who knows what goes on behind closed doors? But none of that is why I'm telling you this."

This whole thing was getting ridiculous. _Who knows what goes on behind closed doors?_ The girl couldn't come off as being more obviously bitter if she was actively trying.

Selphie continued her monologue and Kairi was too morbidly fascinated to stop her. The whole thing was like a train wreck: terrible, but she couldn't turn away from the fiery lumps of twisted metal burning in the street.

"The fact remains is you don't know him like I do. His mother wants him to settle down, so he dates just enough to keep her happy, but all the girls he's dated that I've spoken to have had the same experience as me: either they end it when it's clear things aren't moving forward... or Sora does when he gets cold feet."

"This sounds a lot more like idle gossip from a bitter ex than concern."

Kairi blurted the accusation out before she could stop herself, jumping to Sora's defense without really knowing why she felt so suddenly angry for him. She quickly sealed her mouth shut, half expecting Selphie to go off on her, enclosed in the four walls of this quiet diner and the latter's place of work.

Much to her surprise, Selphie only shrugged, rising from the booth, retrieving the aluminum tray and holding it out in front of her like a shield, turning it in her grasp, the morning sun glinting off the polished surface.

"I'm not saying this to smear him. Sora isn't a bad person, and however his sexuality actually falls, he's  _very_  good at making nice, trusting girls like you feel special and secure until the moment he tells them he just wants to be friends. I just wanted you to have an idea of what you were getting into, but you say you aren't interested, so nothing I've said applies to you. Sora is a great person to have as a friend as far as I can tell, so you have nothing to worry about if friendship is all you're after."

"It is." Kairi bit out, attention snapping back to her tea, clearly done with the conversation.

"Then enjoy your pie. And welcome to the Destiny Islands."

Kairi cut a sideways eye at Selphie as she walked away, eyebrows furrowed, silently seething.

Her first instinct was to get up and leave to make ample distance between her and the last ten minutes, but she caught a whiff of the cinnamon and warm, baked apples from the complimentary pie and it gave her pause to stay.

Kairi figured she might as well get something positive from such a negative encounter, so she continued drinking her tea until her cup was empty. Using her fork to break off a small wedge of pie, she took a bite and inwardly cursed the moment it hit her tongue and its flavor became apparent.

The crust was flaky, buttery, and the filling was tart and sweet—regrettably delicious. If the pie had been stomach turning, she at least might have one more incentive to swear off this place in the hopes of never having to speak to Selphie again.

She made a mental note to somehow figure out the other woman's schedule so she could try and pick "safe" days to come and get a cup of tea and slice of pie.

Selphie had done an eye-rolling job of trying to convince Kairi of some  _great concern_. If petty gossip hadn't entered the equation, she and Xion might have been kindred spirits. But the fact remained that she made some very broad, very  _personal_  statements about Sora. Maybe they were true, maybe they weren't, but they seemed to reveal far more about Selphie than they did Sora.

Selphie essentially tried to plant the seed in her mind that Sora entertained numerous girlfriends to pacify his mother and cover up the fact that he was "maybe" sleeping with his best friend. The scenario sounded more like the convoluted plotline for a daytime drama than someone's life—especially considering what Kairi had intuited of Sora in their time together yesterday.

The woman was undoubtedly bitter towards him, so her initial impression had been correct: they definitely had history. For a woman that claimed she had no interest in playground relationships, she sure didn't seem to mind the playground drama.

Kairi made the decision to leave before the woman in question came over to refill her cup and she felt obligated to stay any longer. She finished her last crumb of pie, throwing more money on the table than necessary to pay for her tea and made a quick exit.

The early morning fog had lifted, giving clarity to the beauty of the island but not to her thoughts. Kairi made great pains during her conversation with Selphie convince the bitter waitress that nothing she said about Sora bothered her, but the truth was she left more confused about her grasp on him than when he'd bowled her over at the docks yesterday. That was most likely Selphie's goal all along, and the thought filled Kairi with contempt as she walked down the boulevard.

If the "concern"  _was_  merely a jealous façade and she actually saw Kairi as some sort of romantic rival, trying to put distance between them through lies would be the typical thing to do.

Anger boiled hotly in her veins once again, and she began to feel boxed in—like there was no way to make a good decision in this situation. The streets were busier now than when she had arrived, so she actually had to wait for the crosswalk signal to give her the greenlight to pass through the small intersection.

She almost wanted to find Sora, drag him into Wakka's Place and throw herself at him full force right in front of Selphie just to spite her. Of course, the sharp shame that followed the notion reminded her that such behavior would be pure pettiness and would put her in league with the same girls she had claimed to despise all her life.

Of course, if what Selphie claimed about his disinterest in women was  _true_ , that stunt would end up more humiliating for Kairi than anyone else. It also would be treating Sora like a piece of meat, and that was wrong no matter if she had romantic interest in him or not, which she didn't.

Head swimming in a never-ending pool of uncertainty, she made the short walk back to the beach. Maybe a change of scenery would be enough to purge some of the negativity from her morning.

The brine in the air got stronger the closer she got to the beach, and the moment she stepped onto the warm sand and inhaled, she did feel a bit better. The gulls squawked above and the gentle hum of the waves lapped at the shore; it was like a booming symphony in an otherwise quiet concert hall. Despite all the craziness that happened to her in the last 24 hours that made her almost regret her relocation to Destiny, this view made those worries almost inconsequential.

Kairi had worn sandals but quickly shed them so she could feel the sand squelch between her toes. However, she didn't anticipate how hot the dry sand was going to be against her bare feet, so the moment it seared against her sensitive soles she yelped and began a frantic hop-skip closer to the shoreline.

The ocean water saturated sand on the shoreline turned out to be her saving grace. It was immediate cool relief against her tender, scorched feet. The sun was bright and warm, but it was only about half past nine in the morning, so it wasn't merciless midday heat. It felt good.

It wasn't the harbor, but there were makeshift docks for boaters and fishermen to tether their vessels to. She hadn't noticed until she was walking near one that there was a modest boat floating among the calm, glassy, blue ocean's surface.

It was a relatively small vessel. She admittedly knew next to nothing about boating so she couldn't say whether it was recreational or commercial. She spotted nets and rigging flanking either side of the craft, so maybe commercial? It looked large enough to be sturdy and accommodating for longer trips, but small enough to where its proprietor wouldn't have much trouble anchoring to one of the small docks that littered the shoreline. It was white with two teal stripes lining the hull directly underneath the railing. "Oathkeeper" was painted across the side of the stern in the same teal shade as the stripes. It was a motorized, sail-less vessel with a glass-windowed cab that she assumed housed the wheel and motor. There was also a large metal drum that rested on the bow of the craft.

It wasn't far from the shore; she could make out its sailor pretty clearly. Tall, tan, with unruly mahogany hair—

 _Oh no_.

Kairi's heart dropped into her feet with a thud that she  _swore_  was audible.

She hadn't seen the man since he left her on her stoop last night, but between Xion and all the drama with Selphie, she didn't think she could act normal in his presence today. Maybe tomorrow, maybe in a week after she'd been dealing with a roomful of kindergarteners, she would be able to separate Sora the person from all the nonsense she'd heard that morning, but not now.

If she started walking and he stayed facing the horizon, she could most likely escape from the beach without incident. For good measure she turned away from the ocean, and began calmly walking away from the water; he was close enough that she wasn't sure if the roar of the ocean was drowning out the noise from the beach or not

She honestly felt a little sad at the turn of events, because by the time her head had hit the pillow last night, she'd realized she really had liked spending time with Sora. Kairi never had a lot of friends, but the ones she did have were lifelong.

Most of them had moved on after high school and college, so long distance calls and text messages had put a strain on those, too. Xion and Roxas were the closest, tangible friends she had, and they were technically family. Perhaps that meant she didn't have the luxury of being so choosy anymore, but she also didn't need any more of Sora's ex-girlfriends breathing down her neck. She wasn't daft enough to believe everything Selphie had said at the diner, but she figured there must be some kernels of truth there if the woman still felt slighted enough to approach her out of what could only be described as jealousy. Unnecessary jealousy, but jealousy nonetheless.

The simple truth was that Kairi didn't need the complication of a friendship steeped in so much ambiguity. Toxic relationships were exactly what she left Radiant Garden to get away from.

Kairi steeled her resolve, picking up speed in her walk, feeling totally confident in her decision to drop all the unpleasantness and start fresh. She could do this. She could go home and give everything a few days to air out and deal with it after her first week at her new school was behind her. There was no reason this all had to be hashed out now, was there?

"Kairiii! Heeyyy!"

The sound of her name bellowed out across the patch of ocean between them in the familiar masculine voice cemented her to the sand beneath her. Kairi clenched her jaw, trying to muster the strength to keep going. He still had to sail to the dock and anchor his vessel; maybe she could completely clear the beach in that time.

Of course, this wasn't Radiant Garden. There was nowhere to hide in this sleepy bay community. She hadn't been able escape old ghosts back home, either.

Sora had been nothing but helpful and accommodating yesterday. Maybe she owed him one last face-to-face meeting before she distanced herself from him for a time to clear her head. She was wanting to do it quietly with no difficult discussion required, but she hadn't planned on running into him today, either.

Biting the bullet, she turned back toward the water, making out his enthusiastic wave. Sora turned and bounded back into the cab and the boat's engine roared to life, the vessel cutting across the water towards her.

Kairi kind of wished the ground would swallow her up before he made it to her.

In just a few moments, he was pulling up parallel to the dock and cutting the engine. He leapt from the cab, pushing and locking it closed behind him. He spent some time securing rigging inside of the boat and knotting heavy rope from the boat to the dock, ensuring the tide wouldn't carry his craft away.

Sora jogged down the platform, beaming. Guilt cut her as she realized what she intended to do, even though she had no clue how she was going to go about broaching the subject at that exact moment.

_Hey, Sora! Good to see you. I got bombarded by your ex at the café this morning. She said you've played every girl you've ever been with and I kind of believe her despite everything I've seen to the contrary. Sorry—I don't think I can be friends with someone like that._

_Hey, Sora! You're not trying to coax me into a parasitic relationship doomed to go nowhere just to pacify your mother and cover up the fact that your best friend is actually your boyfriend, are you?_

No matter the angle it still sounded ridiculous and callous. Maybe avoidance would be best. She just had to figure out how to end this conversation quickly before he realized anything had changed.

The man in question finally closed the distance between them, clasping his hands behind his back.

"You look very refreshed. Sleep well in the new apartment?"

Kairi half hoped he had somehow turned into the biggest jackass on the island in the last half minute. It would make this whole unpleasant business a lot easier.

"I… uh, did sleep well. Thanks for asking." she couldn't take that cheery blue eyed stare in such an intense concentration, so she decided to stare at a sea shell near his feet as if was the most fascinating thing on the planet while she worried the inside of her bottom lip.

"You know… M-maybe we should talk another time. You seem busy. I don't want to hold you up…" She attempted to put him off in the most immediate way she could think of.

"Kairi." he drawled softly. "You aren't holding me up at all. You actually caught me pausing to enjoy the view on my way back to the docks. I've been out here for 2 hours with nothing to show for it. Bad fishing days happen, I guess."

Against all better judgement she finally lifted her gaze to blink at him, momentarily confused; his irises brightened significantly as he continued.

"That's what I do. Commercial fishing." he explained, reading her expression. He swept his hand in a large arc toward the dock. "That's my little gillnetter; she may not be the biggest on the island, but she's a beauty that can catch more salmon than you could imagine. The nets are heavily regulated to prevent over-fishing, which is a good thing. It's just a little business I started with my best friend, Riku. We usually sell a few days a week at the open-air market. We have a stall there." He chuckled, trying to lighten the mood. "It's not as important as teaching children, but I enjoy it."

So his name was Riku. Kairi's mind raced, trying to find an escape route from this conversation. She didn't have to make this some dramatic affair; it would be just as effective to simply excuse herself and become scarce for a few days until she sorted out her emotions about everything. She found her voice somewhere in her stomach, willing it help her convince him that she needed to go, like,  _now_.

"Fishing is important, too. It feeds people, boosts the local economy..."

Wait. That wasn't right. How exactly was she supposed to handle this without mentioning the conversation she had with Selphie  _or_  sounding like the most cold-hearted shrew to ever wash up onto Destiny Islands?

"That's nice of you to say," the lithe muscles in his tan arms flexed as he pocketed his hands. He wore a fitted black tank top and brown cargo shorts. Kairi blinked and quickly looked away, feeling thoroughly distracted all of a sudden.

"Speaking of Riku," he continued, ever clueless to the ambivalence swirling within her. "I told him we had a new neighbor, and he had the idea that we could throw you a little apartment warming party. Nothing major; just some food, maybe a few gifts—"

His hopeful voice suddenly sounded as if her head had been plunged underwater—warbled and faint as he began relaying plans that they had for her. He wasn't making this any easier on her.

"A-actually, I'm not feeling very well. I think I could be getting sick. Now may not be the best time..." maybe telling a little white lie would be enough, or so she hoped.

Sora's eyebrows knitted together in concern. "Oh no. I hope it's not seasickness or anything. I hear people not used to the ocean can get sick from just looking at it." he moved in close and pressed the back of his hand gently against her forehead. "You _do_ feel pretty flush, even moreso than you should in this heat. C'mon; let me walk you home."

His cool knuckles against her flush skin made her heart suddenly thrum, most likely from the knowledge that he was so willing to believe the filmsy excuse she was trying to spoon feed him. Her synapses fired, trying to think of way to talk him out of escorting her back to her apartment.

_No, no, no._

Kairi wrung her hands out in front of herself, trying to channel the nervous energy that suddenly started to skitter through her. She was officially out of ideas, and piling on more chatter in an effort to get away wouldn't fool him for much longer. She'd eventually slip up; she was a terrible liar.

"Y-you really don't have to do that, Sora. You've been so sweet to me these past couple days. Please know I mean it when I say that I'm  _so_  grateful for everything you've done for me. I'm very appreciative that you and Riku would want to do something like that for me, I really am, but I think I probably need to focus on my job for a while."

Sora's face fell, and seeing the raw disappointment shadow over the concern that had once been there made her feel suddenly hollow, like he'd gutted her. "Oh, um… did you need me to help you get your classroom ready, then?"

Kairi shook her head. "N-no, I'll mostly be making lesson preparations from now on. Not much leisure time for socializing.

She watched his adam's apple bob as he swallowed hard, finally comprehending. As if coming back to himself, he shook his head, rubbing the brown spikes on the nape of his neck. "O-of course... I understand. Your work is important… I… I should leave you to it. I'm sorry I've been distracting you. Good luck on Monday, Kairi. I know you'll do great."

He flashed her one of the biggest, reassuring smiles she'd seen from him up to that point, but there was no life behind it; it seemed more like a valiant attempt to convince himself of something rather than an encouragement for her. She hadn't known Sora very long, but it was obvious that this smile was skin deep, wooden—it looked like it had been painted across his face by some invisible force.

He turned quickly and without another word being spoken between them, walked back towards  _Oathkeeper_  . She could almost  _taste_ the defeat he left in his wake on her tongue, and she swallowed hard to rid herself of its unwanted flavor, but instead the bitter pill seemed to just swim in her blood, mocking. As soon as he was far enough away and she was able to relax the impenetrable wall she had to put up in that moment to power through their conversation, her bottom lip began to tremble with emotion. She needed to get as far away from this spot—as far away from  _him_ —as possible, so she practically ran back up the beach, tripping slightly as her bare feet slipped and struggled for purchase against the warm, shifting sands.

Was she seriously about to cry over this, over  _him_? She hadn't even known him a full 24 hours. And yet… that hadn't stopped him from reaching out to her yesterday.

He'd taken it well. Shockingly well and better than she deserved, considering how she offered him little more a paper-thin excuse about work to justify why she was rejecting he and Riku's kindness for no apparent reason. She wasn't even saying  _goodbye_ ; the intention had been more like  _see you later_ , at least until she'd had time to process Sora. His friendship was unexpected, relentless, and she just needed time to reconcile the Sora she knew with the serial dater Selphie claimed she'd spent three months with.

So why had it felt so  _final_?

Maybe if he'd lashed out at her, the aggression would have given her the out she needed to save herself from feeling guilty for hurting him, two selfish and conceited thoughts—things she never equated herself with. But this whole affair had brought out her worst qualities. Maybe some time to herself to sort out the messy web her mind had become since arriving on the island is exactly what she needed.

Kairi finally made it back to the busy crosswalk and repeatedly slammed her closed fist against the button to alert the signal that she needed to cross. At least it was over, she reasoned, the signal ushering her across the street. She could work towards getting his wounded and confused expression out of her head later.

It wasn't until she had made it home and her key hit the lock on her apartment door that she realized Selphie had won after all.

* * *

 

"So… you  _broke up_  with him? After like 17 hours. Am I understanding this right?"

Kairi sighed into the phone speaker. "No, Xion. We didn't  _break up_. We weren't  _dating_ , and I only told him I needed a little time alone to focus on work."

"Of course, of course." A few moments of silence persisted and Xion measured her next words carefully. "So… you put a 17-hour  _friendship_  on  _hiatus_  because of some nonsense his ex-girlfriend spouted to you about a laundry list of exes and him having the hots for his best friend?"

Kairi's mouth went dry as Xion laid the day's events out in such a matter-of-fact way. It really did sound ridiculous on paper and felt like a vast oversimplification of what it was like to experience the bizarre chain of events. "… More or less."

It was Xion's turn to sigh. "Sis, I know I said some less than positive things this morning about the idea of this Sora guy sniffing around, but from what you've told me, I hate to say I think you're the one who's made a mistake. You should have allowed yourself at least a week to get to know him better before you took the ex's advice and told him to piss off."

"That was the plan," Kairi insisted, stretching out longways on her sofa. "I just didn't expect to run into him on the beach. He started going on about this apartment warming party he and his friend wanted to plan for me, then I panicked..."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know. You said you were  _going to leave before he saw you_ , right? But I know you, Kai. You would have ended up trying to avoid him for several days to postpone the awkwardness and that wouldn't have solved anything."

Kairi flushed from embarrassment. Xion knew her too well. "Well, what do you think I should do?"

"God, Kai. You were supposed to get  _smarter_  after Vanitas, not jaded and willing to believe the absolute worst about the next guy."

"Xion!" Kairi scolded her sister at the mention of  _his_  name. "And please. Give me some credit. I don't believe half of what that waitress said; but it was just too much too soon… and he isn't the  _next_ guy. He's  _a_ guy."

"Well, whatever he is, the only thing you can do is go apologize and hope he doesn't hold grudges… I swear I'll never forgive Vanitas for what he did. Whether or not there really was someone else, he's made it hard for you to trust people and that's one of the worst things you can do to a person. He better be glad he's made himself scarce, because I'll flay him myself if I ever see him—"

Kairi felt like the weight of her couch was bearing down upon her instead of the other way around. Her sister continued to hiss about her old flame and Kairi's mind began to drift. She idly picked at the fibers of her sofa's upholstery, trying not to let the memories penetrate her until she could muster the strength to interrupt, which she eventually did.

"It's fine, Xion. It's been over two months. It's just an adjustment."

She didn't like to talk about Vanitas, and Xion knew that, so she wasn't pressed about it, but Kairi let her sister say what she needed to anyway.

"You didn't have to move to Destiny to get away from him." Xion added quietly. "I know it was hard after things ended, but you could have stayed with us if staying in the apartment you shared was too much."

"I know, but I didn't want to intrude."

Xion huffed. "Oh, stop it. You're my  _sister_. It's not intruding. If things get any more problematic on that damn island, we're buying you a ferry and bus ticket back home that'll put you right at our front door."

"Xion…"

"Fine, fine." The older of the two acquiesced. "I'll drop it. At least tell me something I've been wondering since this morning. In your objective-I'm-not-interested-opinion… Is this Sora cute? I've been trying to paint my own picture of him but I can't. Sounds like he's gotta be dreamy; don't think you'd be in such agony over him otherwise."

"Xion! You're terrible. I'm not—!"

"Oh, wow. With that reaction, he must be  _very_  cute. C'mon, Kai, I'm not asking you to profess undying love for the man. You have eyes, I just want to know your  _totally objective_  opinion."

Kairi smiled despite her incredulity at her sister's schoolgirl antics. She supposed you couldn't deny biology and good genes. "Oh, whatever. You win—yes, he's incredibly attractive. Tall, island tan, chocolate brown hair and these incredible blue eyes."

A whistle and a giggle sounded from her phone speaker. "Gee, Kairi, when's the wedding? Down, girl. Maybe we need to protect him from _you_."

Kairi moaned like a wounded animal over the phone as her sister teased her. "You asked for my objective opinion, so I gave it! I don't think I want to play with you anymore."

Xion laughed loudly and Kairi heard shuffling and a deep voice over the line. It was faint, the owner presumably standing some distance away from the phone's microphone.

"Oi. Hey, beautiful. Is that my little sister? And do I have to come over there and strangle that beach bum for you, Kairi?"

She knew immediately that Roxas had joined the conversation, his familiar voice drifting through the receiver. The color drained from Kairi as her sister's betrayal was revealed. "Oh my gosh, Xion! I told you not to say anything."

"We keep no secrets from each other." her sister informed her. "First rule in marriage and protecting family. But no, Rox, you don't. She decided they were going to take a friendship break. She's probably going to beat him up and take his lunch money tomorrow."

Kairi groaned as her brother-in-law guffawed and whooped over the phone at his wife's joke. Now Xion was mocking her.

The trio ending up talking a while longer. Roxas manned the phone as he asked for himself about her first two days on the islands. Thankfully the Sora teasing ended after the lunch money quip and the conversation became easy and vapid afterward, exactly what she needed. She talked about the gorgeous view of the beach and the most incredible apple pie she'd experienced that day, but soon after it was time for 'goodnights' and 'I love yous.'

As soon as she jammed her finger against the 'end call' icon and the line died, her apartment became quiet, save for the soft kerplunk of her dripping kitchen faucet. She then was faced with the reality that the day ended a lot lonelier than it had started.

The evening silence crept into her mind and regret began to curl in on itself over and over again, layering and burrowing deep. Her eyelids felt droopy, like her lashes were weighed down by thousand-pound weights and Kairi decided that maybe sleep would be the best chance she had of putting everything that had happened today behind her. Her footsteps were soft and slow as she walked down the hall to her bedroom. Her bedside lamp illuminated the otherwise dark room, stretching shadows across the walls and floor as she pulled back the bedspread, slipping underneath it.

She pulled the linens up to her chin and the warm blankets comforted and cradled her until her mind was coaxed into a state of calm. Kairi closed her eyes and drifted off into a deep, dreamless sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope this didn't come off as melodramatic; just bear with me if it did. The drama was necessary groundwork, but it won't always be that way-- there are fun times down the pike. I hope you enjoyed the second chapter. And yes, I have a soft spot for Xion/Roxas so I took some liberties with the relationship dynamics in this AU fic. As always, feedback of any kind is much appreciated if you feel so inclined. Thanks so much to everyone who read this far and left kindness for the previous chapter; you're all the best! See you in chapter 3!


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kairi tackles her first day at her new teaching job while trying to put the events of her first weekend on the Destiny Islands behind her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we are at chapter three. Once again, thanks to everyone leaving their comments and kudos. I really appreciate the feedback and it's encouraging to see that some of you are enjoying the story so far. I'm enjoying writing it for sure. Updates might be weekly, depending on how the quickly the story continues to unfold to me, because it's morphing as I write.

The last day of Kairi's weekend had proceeded without hitch. Ms. Gainsborogh had emailed her, formally welcoming her to Destiny Elementary with a few other work-related documents enclosed that she had to spend the last day pouring over. It honestly felt good to put her mind to something that didn't involve all that had transpired since her arrival Friday.

All the messiness from Saturday was still fresh in her mind—the space Sunday put between her and the beach fiasco dug a wide, gaping hole for her regret to settle into. She regretted letting Selphie get to her and regretted letting her accusations put her nerves on a knife's edge to the point that her knee-jerk reaction was to send Sora away. She had no experience trying to put people off like that, and it certainly showed.

The dissolution of her nearly six-year relationship with Vanitas had happened so suddenly, no half-baked excuses about different paths or time apart to focus on her job were needed.

Sora may have favored Vanitas in terms of their mutual strong jawlines and messy, spiky hair, but that was where the similarities ended. Kairi knew that for sure now.

She spent a good portion of Sunday debating whether she should brave the walk of shame back to the fateful dock to try and catch him to offer her apology. Most boat owners rented that space to use indefinitely—it was very likely that's where his craft was always parked—but decided against it.

After she'd caused such unpleasantness, she determined that the suspenseful wait for Sora to reach out to her again first would be her punishment. She'd taken it upon herself to control the terms of their parting, so she would leave the ball in his court if he thought the friendship was worth pursuing a second time.

Which brought her to glorious Monday and first day jitters.

Kairi was thrown back into the present by her phone buzzing on the bathroom counter while she was applying light makeup to her face. She wasn't the biggest fan of makeup, but she figured he first day on the job was as good a time as any to use a small amount.

She tapped her screen twice and it lit up to reveal a text message from Xion.

_Good luck today! Leave drama about hunky islander men at the door~ <3_

Kairi rolled her eyes but smiled at that fact that even with a length of ocean between them, her sister was still her most staunch supporter. On the other hand, her teasing was supremely annoying, and she should have never confided in her about anything Sora-related.

Kairi double checked her visage in the bathroom mirror. Satisfied that she looked put together enough to make a good first impression, she nodded to herself, her reflection mimicking her as if encouraging her to conquer the day.

Packing her supplies into her messenger bag and slinging it over her right shoulder, she exited and secured her apartment. Lumbering down the stairs and absorbed in her thoughts as she was, she paid almost no attention to the silver-haired man leaning against the post on the landing until he was shoving himself off it the moment her flats hit the walkway to intercept her.

Kairi flinched at the sudden movement and backed away, eyeing him warily as he approached her.

"Hey… uh, Kairi, is it?"

Kairi was disarmed by this stranger knowing her name, and the stranger must have noticed this, because his striking green eyes widened in realization.

He shook his head and chuckled ruefully to himself. "Sorry, sorry. I'm not good at this kind of thing at all." he stilted what he was saying so he could offer his hand to her. "I'm Riku… I'm Sora's friend, roommate, and occasional mediator, apparently."

Most of her worry was immediately exorcised from her body. Riku gave off such an easygoing aura that it was hard to be nervous around him.

One thing he said did give her pause.  _Mediator_? He'd also been obviously waiting for her; it seemed clear that Sora had told him about the awkwardness between them the other day. She wondered what and exactly how much Riku knew. If they were as close as Selphie claimed, there was a very good chance Sora had probably told him everything. In that case, she already needed to salvage his first impression.

"Oh, yes. He's mentioned you. Nice to finally meet you."

Riku began walking, gesturing with his hand for her to follow, leading down the path she was taking to the school as if he already knew where she was heading.

"Sora wanted to be here instead, but said you told him you wanted some space, so he asked me to make sure you made it to your first day alright since you're still new to the area."

Guilt settled into her core once again. Of course he did. That was a very Sora thing to do. She still didn't know him that well, but Sora oozed 'protector,' from the square shouldered way he'd walked behind her all that first afternoon, to the way he'd apparently enlisted his best friend to escort her to work even after everything that had happened between them.

"About that… Tell him I'm sorry about what I said." Kairi told him, and she didn't even bother to hide how timid and meek she felt asking indirectly for Sora's forgiveness. "I was feeling nervous about today and when he mentioned a housewarming party, I just panicked."

Riku laughed, and she immediately decided that she wouldn't blame Sora at all if there actually was something romantic going on between the two men. Both were almost irritatingly attractive.

"It's alright." He assured her with a dismissive wave. "I'm the same way about that kind of stuff, honestly. I told him to calm down, that he was going to scare you off. People so rarely move here, especially ones our age. He got a little excited, I guess. I gotta say, it might still be a couple days before you hear from him, though. He's convinced he did something wrong and needs to beg your forgiveness."

Kairi shook her head furiously as they crossed the quiet crosswalk. "No, that's not true at all! He's been nothing but wonderful to me since I arrived. It wasn't his fault and I'm not angry at him."

Riku hummed thoughtfully. "That's good. Can I tell him that? He's been moping around since Saturday and it's really starting to get kinda sad."

Lovely. She really was the worst.

"Please do. That would make me feel a lot better about all the trouble I've caused."

Taking note of her sour expression, Riku nudged her shoulder with his own. "Hey, don't look so sad. It's okay, really. He'll be glad to hear he's been vindicated. I actually wasn't supposed to speak to you at all, just make sure you made it to work, but I figured you wouldn't appreciate some strange guy tailing you on your commute. Sora doesn't think sometimes."

Kairi's heart warmed, sensing the true affection between the two men just from the tone of his voice, even though he was poking fun at Sora. She wished everyone in the world could have their own Riku. Since there was only one of him, that was pretty impossible, but she decided that everyone needed a friend that served as their axis and anchor in this cynical and dark world. She was glad Sora clearly had his; he deserved nothing less.

The walk was relaxing but quiet. Riku was friendly but not talkative like Sora was. That suited Kairi fine; she found herself usually being the one probed for conversation in most instances, too. She was getting the impression that she and the silver-haired islander had a lot in common.

It wasn't long before he had walked her to the front steps of the elementary school. He leaned against the railing, staring up at the tall, red stone building.

"Would you like me to walk you to your classroom? I was going to go inside to see someone for a minute anyway."

Kairi declined with a smile. "I think I've got it from here but thank you. And thank Sora for me too."

Riku chuckled. "I will."

Kairi's shoes felt like they were full of lead as they both began to climb the stairs. She figured Riku had poked fun at Sora earlier to lighten the mood for her sake about what had happened, and part of her was grateful for that, but on another level, she felt terrible all over again every time he mentioned it.

Riku lunged into the metal bar on the heavy double door on the right and pushed it open, holding it on the other side as Kairi stepped through. They walked together across the shiny white tile, her flats clicking against the hard surface just a half second behind Riku's heavy black boots.

He paused as they approached the first adjoining hallway. "This is my stop."

Kairi adjusted her messenger bag to her other shoulder. "I'm a little farther down."

Riku worked his jaw like he was measuring something over in his head before finally deciding to ask. "Hey, do you have a pen and a scrap of paper?"

Kairi thought it was an odd request to blurt out, but she nodded, opening the flap on her bag and handing him a blue ink pen with a neon green stack of adhesive notes. Riku took both and scribbled something quickly on the top note, then handed everything back to her.

Kairi took them back without a question, a bit puzzled, then finally looked down to see what Riku had written, curiosity getting the better of her. It seemed like that's what he wanted her to do, anyway.

There were two phone numbers scrawled across the note in vibrant blue, with Riku and Sora's names scribbled to the right.

"Sorry if this is a little weird, but I know it's probably been hard on you, moving to a new place where you don't know anyone, so call us if you need anything. Even if you just want to vent about a kid in your class that eats his weight in crayons, or if you decide to take a break from your strict work regimen for a bit and come over for a pancake dinner one random night… Just call, okay?"

Just when she didn't think she could feel any worse about what had happened over the weekend, Riku turned out to be just as gracious as Sora. She knew she sounded dumb complaining about two wonderful people offering friendship on a silver platter, but she felt so undeserving. The whole thing felt just wonky enough for her to hesitate, like a shoe you really loved that was a half-size too small. Wonderful and frustrating at the same time.

Kairi felt the heat rise into her cheeks and she really hoped it wasn't visible. "O-oh. Thank you. I'll keep that in mind."

The corner of Riku's mouth upturned into the smallest of smiles. "Good. Well, see you later."

He turned on his heels after saying goodbye and she watched him for a bit as he walked away, dense footsteps getting more and more faint the farther down the hall he got. She wondered idly if the number exchange was something Sora had asked him to do—from what Riku had said, Sora seemed like a worrier.

Then another thought crept up on Kairi: maybe Riku was also giving her a way to apologize to Sora herself for what happened between them Saturday. Of course, Kairi didn't relish the thought of having such a hefty conversation through text; maybe she could call, but that seemed almost as bad. As things stood now, she didn't trust her voice to come forward and speak, knowing Sora would be waiting for her over the line to give him a coherent explanation of why she acted the way she had on the beach.

No, they would have to mend fences in person if they did at all, and she left the next move up to Sora since Riku was going pass along her apology. He was the wounded party now as far as she was concerned; it would be his decision to make either way.

Kairi quickly tucked the stack of notes with their numbers safely into her bag and hurried to her classroom.

* * *

 

Kairi entered her classroom, room 237, and flicked on the light. She had about forty-five minutes before the children would be filtering in, so she decided to sit at her desk and try and will the last-minute jitters she was experiencing away.

She ran her palm against the smooth grain of the wood. The previous teacher had left rather suddenly with very little notice from what she could glean from everything Ms. Gainsborough had told her. They had left the room intact with all the posters and decorations upon the walls. The majority of them depicted basic colors and math facts, others were just cute and colorful characters and shapes. One was a generic list of class rules—things like kindness and sharing among them.

Kairi dug her laptop out of her bag and set it on top of the desk, deciding to check her email one last time before class started. There was originally supposed to be a faculty meeting before class that day, but Ms. Gainsborough had sent out a memo late yesterday afternoon informing them it was being pushed back to 4pm.

She had spent Sunday reading all the files about the curriculum they used for kindergarten at this school and formulated her plans accordingly. It wasn't very different from standards used at Radiant Garden. Admittedly, this was her first time teaching at this level; she was more used to teaching 1st and 2nd grade—a slightly older age bracket.

It's wasn't like the material would be hard; quite the opposite, obviously. It was still 2nd grade however you sliced it, but Kairi knew her students being younger and less disciplined to attending school would probably make up for it in spades.

There was nothing new from Gainsborough, so she shut her laptop and drummed her fingers anxiously against the desk. Beginnings were almost harder than goodbyes for her. There was something especially terrifying about the unknown, about first times.

Kairi spent her remaining half hour pouring over what she had planned for her first day with the kids. She would have about an hour reprieve after she took them for lunch—they went to a special class everyday that she didn't teach. Today it happened to be art, and Gainsborough explained that she would be free to return to her classroom and work on something else while the children got their supplementary instruction, then would go pick them up when their special period was over.

Kairi had just finished reading her outline for what seemed like the 25th time that morning when she heard sound of several feet trudging down the hall. Her head snapped up to see several kindergartners lined up neat and single file at the door with a youthful, beautiful brunette woman with kind green eyes leading them. Upon seeing Kairi, she smiled at her, ushering the kids into the room.

As the children immediately went to their desks, Kairi stood and returned the smile to the woman, who looked to be in her early thirties.

"Good morning, class!"

"Good morning, Ms. Gainsborough." the children replied in sleepy unison

Due to the fact that she was standing in front of the woman herself and over twenty students, she willed herself to keep her surprise in check. Kairi had been trying to get a read on Aerith Gainsborough from her emails and phone calls, and she had the woman pegged as older, stern, and no nonsense. When she had filtered the children in, all encouragement and youthful smile, Kairi hadn't even considered the fact that she could be meeting Ms. Gainsborough for the first time.

"This is your new teacher, Ms. Hart." Aerith continued, "She just moved here from Radiant Garden, so she's new to the island as well as this school. Please give her an island welcome."

"Welcome, Ms. Hart!" the children were a little more enthusiastic that time, and Kairi couldn't help but grin at all the toothy smiles trained at her from the couple dozen desks in front of her.

Ms. Gainsborough turned to her with her own smile, nodding slightly. "And I also welcome you to Destiny Elementary as well as our island. I'm looking forward to getting to know you better as educator, Ms. Hart. I'll see you this afternoon."

With that, the principal of Destiny Elementary left the room, passing the torch entirely to her.

First, Kairi let the class introduce themselves to her, using the opportunity to mark them on the daily class roster as present. The exercise was really a way to match names with faces more quickly, but finding out more about her students certainly didn't hurt.

"I'm Tidus," one cute little blonde boy announced as he stood up by his desk, puffing out his chest. "I'm the best blitzball player on the island!"

The seated students snickered softly, but Tidus ignored it, still looking proud as he sat back down. Kairi admired his confidence, truth be told. A lot of adults including herself could learn something from such unapologetic ambition.

A girl with striking blue-green bi colored eyes went next. "My name is Yuna and I like to go to the beach with my dad and look for buried treasure! I'm also Tidus' best friend and he actually is a pretty good blitzball player."

It took everything Kairi had not to chuckle at that. The young girl looked completely serious and Tidus blushed a little, looking pleased as she finished sharing.

The rest of the students proceeded in similar fashion, and Kairi realized she had a roomful of polite, quick-witted five-year-olds. Happiness and relief swelled inside her, but maybe she should have expected as much. Even though they were part of a large island, the infrastructure separated them from the big metropolis in the center of it, so the community here seemed like a small village to themselves. Everyone on the island that she had met so far (with the exception of Selphie) had been the picture of small-town kindness, so maybe she shouldn't have been surprised that their children were just as well-rounded.

She spent the vast majority of the morning and early afternoon going over the things she knew the previous teacher should have covered with them, just to gauge where the class was truly at. They were supposed to have mastered counting to fifty and writing their own names to give them a baseline for learning the alphabet. It seemed half of them were moving at a good pace and the other half were taking a little longer, which seemed typical for any classroom of people, children or otherwise. There were also a few outliers who fell into camps of being either extremely quick or concerningly behind, but Kairi felt confident that she could get the latter group on track.

Tidus seemed to struggle, while Yuna seemed to be exceptionally bright.

"It's okay, Ms. Hart. Leave it to me. I'll make him do counting drills with me and my dad every day from now on before he plays blitzball." she assured Kairi, and the Radiant Garden native's heart filled to the brim with emotion at the fact that the bond of two children could be that strong. She supposed the innocence and non-existent cynicism of childhood probably made them the ideal candidates for such a friendship. She swallowed a large bubble of sentiment that was putting pressure on her chest. Kairi readily admitted to being almost embarrassingly soft-hearted, but she wondered if she wasn't overly sensitive at such a miniscule thing because of the weekend she'd had.

Tidus had pouted in reply. "You're no fun, Yuna."

"Cherish the friends who push you to do better." Kairi instructed, not even sure if a five-year-old could truly appreciate the advice. "Friends like that are special and hard to come by."

* * *

 

The day progressed rather quickly; Kairi had her hands full with the rush of her first day and lunchtime arrived in what seemed like no time at all. She wasn't necessarily required to sit with the children, only to stay in the canteen and watch over them, but she decided to sit with them regardless. It seemed the best way to keep an eye on them and it wasn't exactly like she had met any of the other teachers to obtain a lunch buddy.

The conversation amongst the group of five-year-olds was interesting, to say the least. Like children do, they had plenty of questions for her.

"Ms. Hart, you're pretty." one little boy said matter-of-factly. Even though it was from a small child, Kairi still felt slightly embarrassed by the unsolicited compliment.

"Oh, well that's sweet of you to say."

"Do you have a husband?"

Kairi nearly choked on the bite she had just taken out of her Red Delicious apple. The child looked unflinchingly serious, still awaiting her response even through her little episode. "N-no I do not. And I am not currently looking for one."

Why was she having this conversation with a five-year-old?

"Well, I'll be six in a few months. Dad says I'll be getting an allowance for cutting bushes in the yard and stuff. We could get ice cream together. I'll buy."

Yuna rolled her eyes from a couple seats down. "Oh my gosh, Noct. Ms. Hart is a grown lady. She doesn't need you for ice cream."

Kairi wasn't sure whether she was witnessing something hilarious or mortifying. She finally decided that wrangling them back to appropriate lunchtime conversation by asking them their favorite movie was the best course of action. As the children started to chatter normally amongst each other once again, she got the opportunity to finish her apple.

 _Note to self_ , she thought idly,  _find an adult to eat lunch with_.

At 12:30pm sharp Kairi was herding the children into the art room. She waited outside for every student to filter in, and a strong chorus of  _"Ms. Fleuret!"_  could be heard from within. Then, she heard another name that gave her pause.

"Mister Riku!"

Kairi couldn't stop herself from peeking inside the room, and sure enough, Riku was leaving with a brown paper bag containing what she assumed was his lunch.

"Hey, kids! Gotta run but I'll see you guys later. Have fun with clay sculpting and behave for Ms. Fleuret."

He was the next one to leave the room. She leaned against the doorway as he exited. When he looked to his left and noticed her there, he smiled.

She must have done a terrible job hiding her surprise, because he seemed to instantly be able to read her unspoken question.

"Namine is an old friend of mine and Sora's." he clarified with an easy shrug. "Her classroom was the stop I made this morning. We rotate bringing her lunch a couple times a week. Today was Sora's day, but… we, uh, switched."

Riku was tactfully trying to spare her feelings again, not wanting to outright say Sora was avoiding her. She appreciated him for it, but couldn't really say she blamed Sora, either.

Kairi was also intrigued to learn that the third element to their apparent trio was a  _woman_. Neither Sora or Riku had mentioned her beforehand, and Selphie didn't either during her rant the other morning.

Granted, her time with Sora and Riku had been very brief thus far-- Sora's by her own doing, so it probably shouldn't have been surprising to find out more things about them.

"I woulda brought you some too and we could have made it lunch for three, but I wasn't sure what your schedule was." he grinned at her, and Kairi couldn't help but reciprocate. "Well, I gotta run back to the docks. See you later."

And with that, he started toward the end of the hall, brown paper bag swaying by his side as he walked. Even though Kairi was free to take care of other matters while the students were getting their special class, she was now morbidly curious about this Ms. Fleuret, so she ducked into the classroom to catch the class already in progress.

Kairi sat quietly at an empty table in the corner and observed.

Namine Fleuret was pretty, blonde, and a  _fantastic_  artist. At least Kairi thought so.

Ms. Fleuret molded the clay in her small, slender hands and it yielded to her as if by magic. The children all sat quietly in their seats, working the malleable substance themselves, little faces trained in deep concentration. The art teacher participated in the assignment alongside them, molding the muddy brown lump into a beautiful figure. Of course, she had long shown the class the proper technique; it wasn't expected for the group of kindergarteners to make theirs look like hers. Kairi could tell she was sculpting the figure for herself. The figure seemed to be a woman in a long, flowing dress, clay hands clasped behind her back.

It was incredible. Kairi was fascinated with watching her work. Ms. Fleuret used a thin stick tool to shape and detail the face and pleats on the dress of the clay woman. She then set her project aside and roved around the room from table to table, checking the students' creations and offering instruction and encouragement. Noctis, the boy who had asked her about her marital status at lunch, beamed when the young, pretty art teacher had told him that his lumpy teacup looked beautiful.

Kairi could tell the kids loved her and loved this class. She could also tell that their teacher cared deeply for them and her craft. Namine's careful, reverent hands manipulating the clay made it apparent that art was much more than an occupation to the other woman. She was glad she had decided to stay.

When their art period was over, the children lined up and the door and both women parted company without a word spoken between them.

* * *

 

After the students had been dismissed for the day and the parents had collected their children, Kairi found herself in the faculty meeting room. There were roughly about 25-30 teachers in the room. She noticed Namine had an empty seat beside her and Kairi decided she wanted to sit beside a friendly face for her first meeting, so she did.

When Aerith entered the room, the low chatter immediately stopped. The older brunette smiled.

"Happy Monday." She greeted them "First thing's first, I'd like to formally welcome Kairi Hart to our school. She's our new kindergarten teacher."

A couple teachers clapped and a chorus of heys and welcomes could be heard. Namine gave her a small, polite smile from beside her.

Kairi nodded. "Thank you. It was a good first day."

Aerith looked pleased. "I'm glad to hear it. Now, I will need all the first-grade teachers to turn in their amended lesson plans by this coming Saturday evening…"

Most of what was said after didn't apply to Kairi or her class, so she just sat there in silence, picking up the gist of what the other teachers were dealing with and trying to match names with faces where she could.

Once Ms. Gainsborough ended the meeting, everyone stood to their feet and hurried from the room, eager to finally bring Monday to a close. It was nearly 5pm.

Kairi followed behind the stream of teachers as they left. She needed to swing by her classroom one last time to retrieve her bag before heading home.

Namine exited the room behind her, calling to her. "Hey, I don't think we got the chance to actually speak to one another earlier."

Kairi turned to the blonde, chucking a little. "I guess we didn't. Those kids can be a handful."

"I'm Namine Fleuret."

"Nice to meet you, Namine. I'm Kairi Hart."

They went with the formality even though they both already knew the other's name and both women fell in line with each other as their walk down the hall continued.

"Riku told me at lunch that the two of you had already met. Well, the three of you, I suppose." Namine started, the "three" amendment in reference to Sora, Kairi assumed. "Told him I couldn't believe they met another woman my age that had moved here and didn't bother telling me."

Kairi bit her lip. "Not to sound mean, but I'm kind of glad they didn't. I haven't exactly been at my best these past few days."

Namine looked at her sympathetically. "Are you talking about the whole thing with Sora?"

Kairi's stomach dropped in the middle of the deserted hallway like she was being hurled down twelve floors in an elevator. She had accepted that Riku knew about what had transpired, but she was hoping she could have at least had a clean slate where Namine was concerned. It was one thing to seem petty in the eyes of two affable guys—another woman being privy to that pettiness was something else entirely.

Kairi's knee-jerk reaction was to ask how she knew about that, but there was only two ways she could. She couldn't help feeling a little betrayed by Riku, even though she supposed she had no right to.

"Riku didn't tell me to gossip." she told her quickly, as if reading Kairi's mind. "I usually have lunch with Sora on Monday since that's Riku's day to man their stall at the market. I asked him why they had apparently switched today. He didn't want to tell me, so I definitely knew there was something more to the story. Played the old ' _friends shouldn't keep secrets_ ' card, so please don't be angry with him. You have nothing to be ashamed of, either."

Kairi chewed her bottom lip. "I never intended to be wishy washy."

Namine shrugged, surprisingly calm. "Nothing wrong with wanting to focus on your work. Sora will understand. He's just upset because he thinks  _you're_  upset."

Kairi stopped walking when they reached her classroom, leaning against the door frame.

"There's a bit more to it than that…"

She'd said it before she could stop herself, and she wasn't sure why.

The blonde looked at her expectantly, but not urgently. "You want to talk about it?"

Kairi sighed. She honestly did. She'd thought about it plenty in the privacy of her own mind and even talked about it with Xion the other day, but it wasn't the same as talking about it with someone who understood the situation.

She couldn't explain it, but there was something about Namine that made Kairi feel like she could confide in her.

"Actually, I kind of do. But I would really prefer you not tell Sora or Riku."

Namine cocked her head to the side thoughtfully. "The part of me that said, 'friends shouldn't keep secrets' to Riku earlier feels like I should say no, but I feel like I can trust you."

Hearing Namine say that felt like a veil had been lifted.

"It's nothing that would hurt them," Kairi assured her. "It's just… Friday, the day I arrived and met Sora, he invited me to Wakka's. …There was this waitress."

Understanding flashed across Namine's face, then, slight distaste. "Selphie?"

Kairi stilted. "Yes, actually. I ran into her again by myself Saturday and she said some things about Sora I should have known better than to believe, even knowing as little of him as I did. I let her get under my skin and I shouldn't have."

Namine shook her head, a shadow of a grimace there. It looked strange on such a classically pretty face. "Don't beat yourself up. I don't even want to know what she told you. She's never been the nicest person, but she's been extra downright toxic since things between her and Sora ended. She was probably jealous that he was spending time with a woman. She never liked me, either. Sora would never say so, but I think she could never get over the fact that the two of us are so close."

 _Jealous that he was spending time with a woman_. Kairi had suspected jealousy herself but hearing it from Namine confirmed everything. Selphie was crafty, Kairi had to give her that. It was becoming likely that most of their conversation in the diner was comprised of half-truths if not blatant lies, all to convince Kairi to keep her distance from Sora.

"But why go through all that trouble? Do you think she wants him back or do you think she's trying to intimidate other women into staying away out of spite?" Kairi couldn't help but ask.

"Knowing Selphie, it's a caustic mixture of both."

Kairi pressed her lips into a hard line at the sobering thought. She still wasn't sure  _everything_ Selphie claimed was a lie. At this point, the accusation that he dated girls in rapid succession was the only thing she might be convinced of as being true, but it was Sora's business and no one else's how much he dated. As long as he wasn't being a duplicitous and deceitful about it—which it seemed like he wasn't—Kairi had no right to hold it against him, so she wouldn't.

"She tried to bully me into keeping my distance from him, too. Passive aggressively, of course." Namine spoke again, breaking Kairi of her musings. "She knew better than to make it blatant; Sora is docile until it comes to the people he cares about. He really liked Selphie for some reason I couldn't fathom. She ended it a little over a month ago and Sora has never told me or Riku exactly why. Like I said, I don't think she could accept that she wasn't the only woman Sora cared about."

Kairi entered her classroom and retrieved her bag, slinging it over shoulder. So Sora had also experienced a breakup around the time she had… It was obvious that he and Selphie's relationship hadn't been as serious or as long as her own, but it was nice to think of heartbreak as a shared experience.

It had been easier to get her own out of her head now that the scenery was different, but it wasn't entirely out of her system. Sora's resemblance to Vanitas was a nagging reminder of the pain and loss. Maybe that had been an unconscious factor in her episode at the beach.

But Sora's personality was so different that it made it much easier than she had initially anticipated. He grinned where Vanitas smirked. His eyes were a deep, patient blue in opposition to the rich, confident amber she'd spent six years with.

When Kairi emerged from the room, Namine smiled at her.

"Enough about drama. Let me take you for the best ice cream you'll ever have in your life."

* * *

 

They stopped by a tiny ice cream shop and she let Namine order for her while she stood outside, basking in the phenomenal weather. In a few moments the blonde emerged from the shop and pressed a frozen blue treat on a stick into her hand. Kairi rotated it clockwise in her grasp, watching the icy mist rising off it in the island heat.

"Sea-salt." she identified. She'd know that color and smell anywhere.

Namine looked impressed. "That's right. A lot of people don't recognize it."

Kairi took a small bite, washing her palette in the creamy salty and sweet mixture. It reminded her of home, of Xion and Roxas.

"This is my sister and brother-in-law's favorite thing in the world. They met at an ice cream shop back in Radiant Garden, actually."

Namine hummed thoughtfully. "A relationship built on a foundation of sea-salt ice cream is built to last."

Kairi grinned at the fact that there wasn't a hint of sarcasm in that statement. She had a feeling that her family and Namine would become fast friends if they ever met.

The pair walked around the hub of the small community, down sidewalks and tightly packed shops and businesses of many varieties, eating their ice cream and chatting idly about unimportant things. All the pressing subjects from earlier had been already talked to death and Kairi was grateful that Namine wanted to talk about their students and jobs for a little while.

"Your art is amazing." Kairi complimented, rolling the last bite of ice cream around her tongue until it dissolved completely.

Namine blanched under the praise. "It's nothing, really. Maybe in another world I would have run off to art school and really refined my craft, but I fell in love with the island when my parents moved the family here when I was a child. Decided teaching was the next best thing."

"The children adore you." Kairi insisted, brandishing her popsicle stick at the blonde. "And even that little clay figure you whipped up today like it was nothing was beautiful. This school and island are lucky to have you. I'm lucky to have met you, too."

"Likewise," Namine agreed, her meekness from Kairi's praise morphing into a small smile. She pitched her own cleaned off ice cream stick into the garbage bin right beside them. "I love the guys, but it's been nice talking and laughing with another female."

Kairi nodded. "Mm, definitely. I think I needed this."

The Radiant Garden native truly meant that. She was loath to part company with the other teacher. The last couple of hours had been relaxing and uncomplicated, but it was getting late, and she didn't want to hold Namine up just because she wasn't ready to return to her empty apartment.

Kairi knew what moving to a new place entailed—it was bound to be lonely, at least for a little while. She was glad to have met two more friendly faces in the span of one day.

"Well, I better head home." Kairi continued after a pause, softly. "I'm sure I'll see you tomorrow."

"Tomorrow." Namine affirmed, and it sounded like a promise.

* * *

 

The walk back to her apartment was peaceful and uneventful. As Kairi trudged up the stairs she decided it almost felt like a week had passed instead of just several hours.

She shed her shoes and messenger bag as she secured the door behind herself, and a calm seemed to settle over her as she basked in the joy of being in her safe place after such a long day. It was still early; just barely dusk.

Kairi already had her lessons for the week laid out. She supposed she could plan ahead to next week; Aerith seemed to like their plans for the coming week turned in by Saturday night and that was only five days away.

Deciding that was how she would spend the remainder of her night, she shuffled across the room to her bag, hauling it to her seat on the cushy chair. Kairi rummaged through, retrieving her computer and notes when she noticed the bright colored adhesive notes out of their usual pocket.

That's when Kairi remembered. After everything that had happened that day, she had forgotten that Riku had given her his and Sora's phone numbers. She peeled the first note from atop the stack, covered in Riku's tiny, compact scrawl. It somehow felt hefty between her fingers.

Kairi knew she should send them a message just to open the line of communication. She really didn't want to perpetuate the idea that she was avoiding them to focus on work, especially after she had insisted to Riku that she'd wrongly used that as an excuse to Sora because she was feeling overwhelmed about everything going on.

She quickly programmed Riku's name and number into her contacts and drafted a message.

_This is Kairi. Thanks for everything today. Namine is wonderful, btw._

Admittedly, Kairi wasn't the best at messaging. She much preferred to speak in person and seemed to always forget to reply to messages, especially if she was preoccupied. She had a baseline anxiety communicating through words, always afraid that what she was saying could be misinterpreted.

She felt relief when Riku replied within the minute.

_You're welcome. And, yes, she is._

Kairi couldn't help but smile. She should have known better. It was extremely easy talking with Riku, no matter the format. She read over the other name and number with apprehension.

Kairi hated that she became this anxious when it came to Sora. He wasn't an intimidating presence at all. She felt the last fingers of shame caressing the back of her mind. She hadn't done anything truly cruel to him, she knew that, but she'd done enough to make things tense and awkward between them.

Swallowing her nerves and a measure of her pride, she added Sora to her contacts and pounded several messages into the character box. She deleted all of them, deciding they were all too wordy or too brief. She was still determined to hold off her real apology until she could give it to him in person—until Riku had passed on her message and Sora had decided whether he wanted to forgive her or not.

But that didn't mean Kairi had an excuse to do nothing at all before then. Suddenly irritated with her own internal back and forth and inaction, Kairi quickly keyed another message.

_It's Kairi_

She promptly and forcefully stabbed the 'send' icon against the glass screen before she could over analyze the brief message.

With the strange weight off her mind she popped up from her seat like a cork bobbing back above water after being pulled under. She hurled her phone onto the soft cushions of her couch just three feet away as if the device had become a volcanic rock searing her palm. Kairi's stomach rumbled and she suddenly remembered she hadn't eaten much of anything today.

It was an odd sensation; she was obviously hungry yet had no desire to go about the steps necessary to do anything about it. She finally decided she could at least manage making a sandwich, so she left for her small kitchen and rummaged through the refrigerator for ingredients.

Kairi emerged from the kitchen with her creation on a plate and lifted the sandwich to her lips, poised to take a bite. That's when she heard a familiar muffled buzz from somewhere in the apartment. She flicked her eyes over to the couch, her phone screen lit up and vibrating frantically, the ID displaying an incoming call. She set her plate down on the coffee table, eating forgotten as she read the name multiple times as if measuring her next move.

 _What did you expect to happen next? You messaged_ _ **him**_.

Deciding now wasn't the time to balk, she picked up the phone and accepted the call.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was actually under the weather as I was proofreading this. I hope you enjoyed and hopefully my editing wasn't all over the place as a result. I liked introducing Riku and Namine to Kairi, and hope their friendship seems organic. I debated where to end this chapter, eventually deciding to leave you guys with a small cliffhanger. It felt like a bit much to have her meet Riku and Namine as well as begin her conversation with Sora all within one chapter, so that's the reasoning behind that. Hope you all are looking forward to chapter 4, and as usual, feel free to leave me any thoughts or feedback you may have.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kairi hopes for reconciliation and continues to bond with Namine. Sora settles an unexpected debt.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here is chapter 4. Thanks again for all the positive feedback and kudos; I hope you continue to enjoy this story with this new installment. I think it will be at least 8 chapters, maybe more. We're getting to the really fun parts for me as a writer and hopefully you guys as readers. There's some plot advancement here, but it's mostly continuing to flesh out characters and relationships. Also, just keep in mind that bold lettering represents text messaging; Kairi's will be written in normal lettering while italics will be used for the other party's messages.

Kairi's mouth went suddenly dry. She wasn't sure why. She had been hoping Sora would contact her sooner rather than later, eager to mend fences and start over, so why was she suddenly frozen by the notion of speaking to him?

She reinforced her grip around her phone.

"Kairi? It's Sora."

A deep breath and she finally found her voice. "H-hey, Sora. Hope you didn't mind the message. Riku gave me your number."

"Not at all. I'm actually glad that he did. I… uh, I know you wanted time to yourself, but I was just wondering if you might be willing to meet me somewhere so we can talk."

"Sora, about what I said Saturday…" she tried to interrupt him before he ended up doing something foolish like apologizing to  _her_.

"I know. I'm sorry. I understand completely if you don't want to. I just need a few minutes to talk and I promise I'll leave you alone. I just don't want to say this stuff over the phone."

Kairi sighed. Apparently, he hadn't spoken to Riku yet. It was probably for the best that he heard it from her anyway, and now the difficult part of taking the first step was over.

"No, it's okay, Sora. We can meet. Just tell me where."

Sora went quiet for a moment. "Um, I'll just meet you outside your apartment in fifteen minutes, how's that?"

Kairi agreed and the pair said their goodbyes before ending the call. She found herself running to her bathroom mirror and fixing a few strands of her dark red hair and splashing her face with water.

It was dumb, she knew, scurrying around like she was getting ready for a first date when in reality she was just going to apologize for her hasty behavior at the beach Saturday. She decided to chalk it up to nervous energy and not think too hard about it.

By the time Kairi left her apartment, Sora had already arrived and was sitting on the bottom step, waiting patiently. Upon hearing her door close and the jingle of her keyring as she locked the door, Sora stood and faced her.

He buried his hands in the pockets of his dark grey jeans as she met him at the base of the stairs.

"Hiya." he greeted, "How was your first day?"

Sora began wordlessly walking down the sidewalk as he casually began a conversation. Kairi wasn't sure where they were going, so she just followed beside Sora.

"It was good," she answered. "I think meeting Namine was the highlight of my day, though."

Sora beamed at the mention of his friend. "Really? Nam is the best! I'm almost kind of jealous you get to work with her every day. You'll probably get to see her art all the time; she's so modest about it outside that classroom that she hardly shows it to me or Riku."

Kairi doubted he called her to shoot the breeze about her first day with her kindergarteners, but she was content to take the scenic route with him while he herded her to where they were going for the actual talk she was anticipating.

"Speaking of Riku," her curiosity prompted, "Have you spoken to him today?"

Sora shook his head. "No, not since he left for the dock and I left for our market stall. Any particular reason?"

She was of course fishing for information to see if Riku had been able relay her apology from earlier, and apparently, he hadn't. Kairi wasn't about to tell Sora that, though.

"No, just nosy I guess."

Kairi hadn't intended it as a joke but Sora had a healthy laugh about it anyway.

* * *

 

Sora took her downtown, close to the beach. As they passed by a small dojo, a petite woman with dark hair styled into a pixie cut was outside locking up. When she looked up and saw the two of them walking, she waved.

"Hey Sora!" she greeted him, wiggling her fingers in a wave.

Sora smiled at her. "Good to see you, Yuffie."

Kairi quirked a brow; the look she bounced back to him was decidedly flirty, and Kairi was positive she saw the small woman wink at him for good measure. She wondered offhandedly if this Yuffie was a member of the dating menagerie Sora supposedly had.

If there  _was_  some kind of hidden message to intuit from Yuffie, Sora either was oblivious to it or just didn't care, leading her across the street toward the shore. Kairi thought she recognized the path he was taking her on, and it was confirmed when they stepped onto the cool sand. A comfortable breeze lifted off the ocean as the last vestiges of daylight were fading into night and the  _Oathkeeper's_  dock came into view.

"I hope you don't mind," Sora spoke up, sounding sheepish for the first time that night. "I wanted somewhere private, but not so private, you know?"

The familiar briny air ticked her nose as they crossed the stretch of beach and the space between them and the wooden construct lessened.

"No, this is fine." Kairi told him, standing at the end of the dock.

 _Oathkeeper_  stood anchored dutifully at her appointed place, slightly rocking from the calm ebb of the waves. Sora nimbly hopped over the low side of the craft then held his hand out to her in offering. Kairi accepted and his large, warm hand covered hers, pulling her towards him. Her foot slipped on the slick lip as she tried to get a foothold on the other side and a moment of panic shot through her. Without hesitation Sora's other hand hooked beneath her armpit and he effortlessly hauled her over the rest of the way.

"You okay?" he dropped her hand, opting to quickly look her over.

Kairi nodded, laughing nervously. "Just a little frazzled. Thank you."

He smiled, ushering her over to a bench seat near the bow. He sat and she did the same.

Sora leaned forward, bracing his forearms against his thighs, clasping his hands together. More quiet stretched between them as they sat in the lightly shifting craft and the gentle waves lapped against the hull.

"Kairi, I—"

"Sora, before anything else I need to say something." She interrupted him before he could get out the apology that Riku claimed he had planned.

"It's okay. I understand, just let me s—"

Kairi pressed her finger to his lips. Whatever Sora was saying died in his throat and he immediately shut up.

"Can I please say something first?" she asked, no small amount of amusement in how they were both so eager to do the same thing.

He nodded slowly and mutely, looking very much like a kicked puppy. If his determination to take responsibility for what happened wasn't so infuriating, it would have been almost cute.

"I wanted to let you know I'm sorry for the excuses I made Saturday."

Kairi, finally having said what she'd been desperately wanting to say since that morning at this very same spot on the beach, exhaled in relief. Sora's cobalt eyes softened, becoming even more warm and expressive than they usually were. She moved her finger from his mouth, but he stayed quiet.

"I realized after that I didn't really want space." she continued. "I'm not even sure what made me say any of it. Maybe I was still having trouble leaving some things behind at Radiant Garden and I took it out on you without realizing it."

Sora licked his lips. "Sounds like not everything back home was ideal when you left."

"Not everything, no. I was in a relationship with someone for a long time." Kairi found herself confessing to Sora before she could stop herself. She wasn't sure why she felt so forthcoming with him about Vanitas. Taking into account that he looked like the man she left behind, Kairi felt like she should have trouble even being near Sora.

Maybe that had been the case when they first met, but now she felt none of the awkwardness. The desire to be proper friends outweighed any of that in this moment.

Sora looked at her calmly but didn't probe for more information, like he knew that she still had more to say but didn't want to pressure her.

"Things ended with him about two months ago. I'm still trying to get it out my system, I guess. It's one of the reasons I decided to move. Figured a change of scenery would speed up the process."

Of course, she didn't mention the resemblance both men bore with each other. She didn't want to give Vanitas any power over her on this island, and she didn't want Sora getting the idea that she was looking for a convincing substitute Vanitas to help her snuff out any residual feelings she might have.

"I'm sorry too, then." he murmured quietly. "It sounds like you were going through a lot and I was just piling more stress onto you."

Kairi shook her head, a light buoyancy coming over her in the wake of being honest about her move to islands with someone who didn't know her back in Radiant Garden. "It's not your fault. They're my problems and I need to learn how to handle them."

The breeze felt good. Neither of them spoke as she just enjoyed sitting with him on his fishing boat. She was surprised at how peaceful and relaxing it was. She expected such a practical vessel to be messy and maybe even odorous, considering they caught sea life with it, but apparently Sora and Riku kept it as clean as humanly possible.

Sora stood up from his seat, offering his hand to her again. "Then it's decided."

Kairi blinked at him but took his hand. "What's decided?"

"I'm going to make sure this guy stays in the past where he belongs." he pulled her to her feet. "By the time I'm done, you won't even remember his name."

Sora said it so casually with such determination, Kairi couldn't stop the laugh that bubbled up from within her.

"That would be impressive. We were together for six years."

Sora shrugged. "I like a challenge. Riku and Nam will be on the case, too."

The thought of all the new people she'd met on Destiny helping to make Vanitas a distant memory filled her with warmth. Maybe this was what she needed. Maybe she chose this place out of all the others in the world because what she needed was right here and it was somehow meant to be.

Destiny. 

* * *

 

Sora walked her back to her apartment afterward.

When they arrived at their destination, he leaned against the fire red brick of the outside wall while she rummaged through her small satchel bag for the key. Before she could even unlock the door and turn to tell him goodnight, his arm shot out in front of her, a steel cable barring her from moving another inch.

There was a split second of alarm on her part. Sora must have picked up on her recoil because he swallowed whatever it was he had been meaning to say. His arm immediately dropped back to his side like her door had been an open flame against his palm and the air between them returned to normal. Kairi relaxed again, thankful he'd realized his error. She looked at him expectantly, silently giving him permission to continue.

"For what it's worth, he made the biggest mistake of his life when he let you go." he told her, voice low but calm. "I hate that you had to hurt for it to happen, but I'm glad you ended up here. It'll always be his loss, Kairi."

Kairi felt like her face caught fire. He said it with such effortless conviction, like he'd been an observer for the entire duration of those six years. There was no way he knew anything about what happened between her and Vanitas, but there was something cathartic about having a man like Sora refer to their breakup as  _his loss_ , knowing as little as he did. It made her want to believe it.

She turned her key around her finger. "T-thanks. Wish I felt as confident about it as you do."

"Don't worry; you will."

Then like the intensity of the last moment never happened, Sora flashed her his megawatt smile as if to reinforce his declaration of faith in her. It was then Kairi almost understood why Selphie had been so willing to stoop to the lowest level of bitchdom to keep any other woman from getting close to him.

" _He's very good at making nice, trusting girls like you feel special and secure."_  she had said.

Kairi now realized that she'd finally found the grain of truth Selphie had spoken to her that day, buried underneath her resentment she'd piled on top of it. Whatever else about Sora and women that could be said, whether it was true or not, came from that one certainty.

But as long as those nice, trusting girls didn't let themselves get carried away, feeling special and secure wasn't a bad thing, right? Kairi didn't need to stay  _away_ ; she needed to stay in  _reality_ , and she felt confident she could do that. She only wanted his friendship, after all.

"G'night, Kairi. I'll see you soon." he told her finally.

"Goodnight." she parroted, and something between them finally clicked into place for Kairi.

* * *

 

Kairi was curled up in her favorite blanket reading a paperback when her phone rang for the second time that night. Seeing it was Xion, she promptly answered.

"Hey, Xi."

"How was your first day? Drama free, I hope?"

Kairi closed her book, setting it aside. "Pretty much."

"Sounds like there's a story.

Kairi clicked her tongue thoughtfully. "Kinda, but I'll give you the short version. Sora ended up getting his best friend/roommate to escort me to school and the art teacher ended up being another close friend. Hit it off with both of them. I just got back from smoothing things over with Sora himself. My students are pretty great, too."

"Escort you? He not know GPS is a thing?"

Kairi laughed. "Don't ask me to get in his head. Maybe he believes in people over computers or something. Riku is great so I don't think I'll look a gift horse in the mouth in this case."

"Oh, my gosh, Kairi,  _stop_. The only man I want to hear about is my incredible husband. What a gorgeous hunk of raw masculinity!" Retorted an artificially female voice, badly mimicked.

Kairi rolled her eyes as she heard a kerfuffle and Xion's distant voice in the background.

"Give me back the phone, Roxas, or you'll be handling your own hunk of raw masculinity from now on."

A whimper came over the line; the voice from before but not as clear. It was back to its natural deep tone. "You're beautiful and I love you please forgive me."

"Put on that cute little outfit you wore for our anniversary and make me a nice dinner. I might think about it."

Kairi groaned. Her sister's voice was clear again, so she assumed Roxas had given her the phone back. "The both of you have  _waaay_  too much free time."

"I need to stop having conversations on speaker where he can hear them." Xion sounded wistful, but Kairi didn't think for one minute that her sister was actually upset. Xion  _loved_  the way Roxas bounced off her energy.

"You know you love it."

"Pfft." Xion huffed. "He clashes with the throw pillows on the loveseat. I might return him tomorrow. But Roxas aside, I'm glad to hear you sorted everything out and your first day was good. Makes us worry less."

"I'm glad too. Feels like a weight off my shoulders."

They made small talk for a little while longer before Xion had to go because apparently Roxas really had made her dinner.

Not long after Xion hung up, Kairi received a sweet text from Gran, who also asked about her day. She had spoken to her grandmother Sunday afternoon but hadn't told her anything about Sora, only that she liked the beach and her new apartment. Gran seemed content with that.

Right after things with Vanitas had ended, the older woman used to ask how Kairi was doing in the most mournful voice. Gran had always liked Vanitas just fine; a far cry from the detest Xion harbored for him.

Kairi didn't vent to her about the rough patches with him like she did Xion. She didn't want her grandmother to worry, so Kairi made sure to only tell her about the good times from back then.

She replied to Gran that she was content and excited about her new life on the Destiny Islands, and of course, she was eating properly. She would eventually tell her grandmother about Sora and the others so the Hart family matriarch would know she wasn't lonely anymore.

* * *

 

The next morning proceeded much the same as the one before it, aside from the fact that Kairi was alone on her trek to school. It wasn't necessarily a bad thing, but she strangely already missed Riku being there. Of course, she had his number and had been encouraged to call it whenever she felt the urge. Maybe she'd take him up on that at some point. If Sora was an encourager and mood lifter, Riku seemed like the voice of reason when you needed advice or just a non-judgmental ear.

Her students continued their improvement. Yuna seemed to have kept her word about helping Tidus study, because the boy came to class much more prepared for the classes' counting drills than the day before. Learning how to write single letters somehow was more difficult for the majority of the five-year-olds than the counting had been.

When lunch came around, Kairi decided to sit at a small table by herself a little ways away from the children, but stayed close enough to watch over them. Five minutes or so into the period, Kairi had already finished the sandwich she brought and was now nibbling on a small bag of almonds.

That was about the time that Namine filtered into the canteen with Sora in tow. Kairi watched as they approached her table and sat, pleasantly surprised.

"Sorry we're late. It was Sora's fault, even though he was the one who insisted he wanted to have lunch with both of us." Namine apologized as they sat on either side of Kairi.

"You didn't have to tell her that part, Nam." Sora grouched, setting down a brown bag on the table, not unlike the one Riku had been carrying the day before. "It was grilled cheese day so that thieving dog came for our lunches again. I had fight for my life to get here with it intact."

Namine sighed. "It's a small, hungry puppy. Probably wanders away from its owner on a beach walk or something. Don't tell me it actually almost overpowers you."

Sora murmured something about it not being  _that_  small, and the whole story made Kairi feel kind of sad.

"Also," he added. "We know everyone who lives here and I've never seen it with anyone. That puppy has been hanging around the docks for a couple weeks at least, so it definitely doesn't belong to a tourist. I'm not sure it has a home."

"A stray, then?" Kairi mused. "Poor thing. I always wanted a dog as a kid, but Gran always said they were a lot of work and we had our hands plenty full with my sister."

Namine laughed. "My family had a cat. He's still alive, actually. A chubby, cranky grey cat named Mr. Dusk. Terrific at napping."

Kairi giggled while Sora unpacked the brown bag. He offered no pet story of his own, just seemed thoughtful as he slid a resealable bag containing a grilled cheese sandwich to her and Namine.

"The Strife family specialty." he told Kairi as she unsealed the bag. "Very important. It's what you want when you're, hungry, happy, or sad. One sandwich to rule them all."

Kairi was nothing short of amused. "I thought all grilled cheeses were created equally."

Sora gently nudged her arm with his in admonition. "Everyone thinks that before they've had my mom's recipe."

Kairi ventured a look to Namine for support. The blond only shrugged, having already taken a few bites from hers.

"Wish I could tease him, but it's actually delicious. I don't understand it either."

Sora beamed with pride and Kairi finally took a bite too. Like Namine said, it was wonderful. Maybe the best grilled cheese she'd ever had. Sora was clearly a man passionate about his sandwiches.

"This is so yummy, yet simple." Kairi complimented. The cheddar was nice and sharp, the bread was savory and crispy. "What is the Strife secret?"

Sora placed his hand over his heart. "Love of course,"

Kairi couldn't help but find the dead serious way he answered the question endearing, even though she was sure he was only saying it for the sake of a joke.

"…and half a stick of butter." he added as an afterthought. "But mostly love."

The girls had a good laugh, but Sora maintained his serious expression in defense of his family's most treasured food secret.

* * *

 

The children didn't have art that day, so she dropped them off at the music room with the elderly gentleman who served as the music teacher. Kairi was tempted to stay for that lesson out of curiosity as well, but Namine had asked her to stop by the art room during her free period. Destiny Islands Elementary only taught grades kindergarten to 3rd, the intermediate and high school being a drive into the city.

When Kairi quietly entered the room, she noticed a group of what looked like 3rd graders working on some sort of watercolor project. Namine was just pacing the room, observing their work when she noticed Kairi step in.

She took a moment to slip through a closed door toward the back of the room. She emerged a second later, holding a small figure in her hand that she offered to Kairi.

"This is for you." The artist told her with a small smile. "you seemed to like it a lot more than I did."

Kairi held the gift by the base, turning it slightly for a closer look. It was the figure that Namine had been working on as a demonstration for her students the day before, except she had obviously painted it and it seemed to shine with a hard, glassy sheen. The clay-formed woman was colored with red hair and a long pink dress. She actually bore a striking resemblance to Kairi herself.

"Oh my gosh, Namine. This is beautiful."

"I was going to destroy it and add it back to the clay supply after your students left yesterday, but I decided to paint and glaze it before I left. I fired it in the kiln early this morning. It's supposed to be you. Think of it as both a welcome and a gift to commemorate new friendships."

Kairi's throat hitched with a bubble of emotion. "T-thank you. I'll treasure it always."

"It's just incinerated clay. Don't cry in front of the kids over it." Namine scolded with a teasing smile. Almost in contradiction, the blonde's eyes were brimming with sentimentality and Kairi couldn't help but smiling in spite of the both of them.

* * *

 

A few hours later Kairi found herself at home, grading the worksheets the children had turned in for homework that morning at her kitchen table. From its spot a foot away, her phone vibrated and the screen lit up as she received a text message from Sora.

 _ **Are you home right now?**_ it read.

Kairi pulled the phone closer and typed out her reply with one finger as she continued to grade:  **I am.**

Another message came promptly after _._ _ **Can I come over? I have something for you.**_

Kairi quirked a brow at that, curiosity spurred.  **Sure.**

_**Great. I'll see you in twenty minutes.** _

When their text conversation ended, she got back to the task of grading, which admittedly didn't take much longer. She only had 23 students to her name. She decided the workload for kindergarten was much more manageable as opposed to 2nd grade like she was used to. She used to participate in an afterschool tutoring program for kids who learned at a slower pace than their classmates, and that proved to be more of a challenge than anything else in her teaching career up to that point.

Kairi used to have to plan and grade assignments for those students on top of her regular class. Was it odd that part of her missed the late nights and countless drained teacups? Vanitas would sometimes help her when she was burning the midnight oil extra late, though he often fell asleep on the sofa with a lapful of worksheets only half-graded.

The good memories almost cut as deep as the bad. Kairi forced herself to stop reminiscing, trying desperately to contribute as much to forgetting about Vanitas as Sora pledged he and the others would.

The minutes droned on as she went about planning next week lessons until two firm raps at her door broke her concentration. Kairi got up and went to the door, wresting it open, revealing Sora as he stood on the stoop, rolling back on his heels slightly.

"Can we come in?"

At hearing the  _we_  part, Kairi reflexively looked down to his hand, which grasped a length of nylon. Even farther down, she noticed a beige puppy standing at his feet, trying excitedly to get into the apartment against the non-existent slack Sora was allowing it.

Kairi moved out the way, nodding, unsure what to think.

"Did you get a dog?"

Sora stooped to the ground, gathering the pup in his arms. The creature yipped in surprise as it was hoisted into the air, but its tail began to wag. Sora stepped into her apartment and she sealed the door behind him.

"Yes and no." he answered, ditching his shoes at the door before padding over to her sofa and having a seat. Kairi sat beside him and scratched the small dog behind the ear. She noticed the pink collar fastened around her neck.

"After lunch today, I was thinking about what you and Nam said about my grilled cheese thief. The though of the puppy being hungry and alone made me kinda sick to my stomach, so I saved half of my sandwich when I went back to the docks."

Sora passed the dog to Kairi and she accepted, letting the lively animal get comfortable in her lap as he continued talking. "When I hauled anchor for the day, sure enough, I saw this little girl here wandering around again. Gave her the other half of the sandwich and she took off. I followed, wanting to see where she took it, and she went all the way back to town. She ran to one of the first alleys off the beach and into a beat-up cardboard box with a blanket inside. I think some good Samaritan must have put it together for her."

Kairi had been stroking the smooth hair from the crown of the dog's head to the base of her tail while she listened to the story. "So, she's definitely a stray if she took her meal back to a cardboard box, right?"

Sora nodded, sad at first, but then smiled. "That's right, and I hated the thought of that. She seemed like a good pup and I remembered that I owe her a lot."

Kairi blinked at that. "You  _owe_  a stray dog? How so?"

Helping stray animals was certainly the right thing to do and she was glad Sora felt the same, but she didn't think she'd ever heard anyone say they  _owed_  a homeless animal.

Sora reached over, scratching the side of the puppy's belly. "If she hadn't pilfered that sandwich last Friday, I never would have run into you on the beach."

He paused to look at her pointedly, small grin still playing on his lips. Kairi couldn't help the peculiar feeling that skittered through her chest under his crystalline gaze.

"I figured finding her a home is the least I could do." he patted the animal's side affectionately. "You said you'd always wanted a dog earlier today. Thought it seemed like a good fit."

Kairi went stark still. "Wait, she's for  _me_? She's what you came over to bring me?"

Sora nodded. "If you want her. I took her home and bathed her. She behaved like a champ indoors, so I'm assuming she's house trained to some degree. Course, if you aren't interested, I'd be happy to be her new papa. Riku will probably let me keep her if I promise to take good care of her."

His chuckle was the tell that let Kairi know he meant it as a joke, but she could honestly see Riku lecturing Sora that 'pets are a big responsibility,' and all the usual things kids were told by their parents when they asked for dogs.

Kairi lifted the docile animal to her face, inspecting her more closely. Her little puppy heart was beating rapidly with that ever-present excitement under her palm. Her ears almost seemed too big for her head at this size, and her tail wagged frantically. She gave an expectant bark after Kairi didn't do anything but stare at her.

Did she want to keep her? It almost wasn't even a question. She cuddled the animal close, kissing the top of her head. She picked up a clean smell from whatever Sora used to bathe her. That paired with the silky coat against her cheek was immediately calming.

Kairi gave Sora a fervent nod to answer the question hanging in the air, setting the pup on the floor, who took off on her little legs and began running in circles around the living room.

Sora leaned back into the couch, his hands braced beside him. "You snuggling that puppy was probably the cutest thing I've ever seen in my life. Getting her off the street was already the right thing to do, but the look on your face just now made running through town after her worth it ten times over."

Once again Kairi found herself feeling almost rattled over the way he praised her without any preamble or hesitation, but shook it off.

"She's beautiful, Sora. Thank you so much for thinking of her… and me."

Sora shook his head. "Don't mention it. I'll just be happy knowing you're not alone in this apartment at night anymore. I think she's a little Labrador, at least partly. She'll get bigger, but not huge. Cuddly, good swimmers, great companions. You have a name in mind yet?"

Kairi thought for a moment before a name popped into her head. A strong female name she read in a book once. "How about… Shiva?"

Sora hummed pleasantly. "Shiva? It's pretty; I like it."

He whistled twice and called toward the small Labrador using her name. The puppy looked up from where she had been sniffing her way around the room, then promptly returned to her task.

Kairi laughed. Sora shrugged.

"I'm sure she's a quick learner. I can't believe someone would abandon a puppy like that. She had no collar; we ran by the pet store on the way here and I got her that pink one."

"Not everyone is like you, Sora." Kairi remembered wanting to get a dog even after she'd started teaching, but Vanitas wasn't much of an animal person. She knew how to pick her battles.

Sora cocked his head to the side. " _Like me_ …?"

"Sweet, caring. A lot of people would have left Shiva to her own devices at the docks without a second thought."

He carded a sheepish hand through his brown spikes. "I did until you mentioned her maybe being a stray and I saw how gloomy that made you. It wasn't until then I realized I'd been doing the wrong thing."

"It doesn't matter when you realized it, Sora, only that you did."

Sora smiled at that, standing up. "Maybe you're right. Thanks, Kairi. I probably should let you get back to your night before it gets any later."

She nodded, standing also, but admittedly felt a bit disappointed to see him go. He was nice to talk to. A ball of positive energy that you couldn't help but feel better for being around.

He stopped on his way to the door to pick up Shiva. She yipped, licking his face as he held her close so he could speak to her. He closed his one eye to protect it from getting assaulted by puppy tongue.

"Now, behave yourself for Kairi tonight and while she's at school tomorrow, 'kay? I'll bring you a treat tomorrow if I hear good things."

Shiva went immediately quiet and still upon hearing that. Sora laughed, scratching her ear one last time before setting her back down. "She's smart to be that young. Knew there was something special about her."

Kairi had to admit, watching him fuss over Shiva was really too precious.

Before she could second-guess herself, she quickly wound her arms around his middle in a hug.

"Thank you again. For Shiva and everything else. I don't think I would have made it these first few days without you, Riku and Namine."

She felt him stiffen under her touch and wondered if maybe she hadn't overstepped her bounds with him. Just as she started to detangle herself to try and salvage her dignity, Sora finally returned the embrace, arms loosely encircling her shoulders.

"You're welcome. I'm glad I met you, and I know Riku and Nam feel the same." he murmured, voice close to her ear.

Kairi pulled away first to find Sora smiling, and most of her apprehension about what had just happened faded away.

"Sleep tight, Kairi." was the last thing he said before he left her apartment.

Shiva whined a for a few minutes after he left until Kairi pulled her up to sit with her on the couch while Kairi finished her lesson plans for next week.

* * *

 

The next day Kairi and Namine ate lunch alone together, Riku and Sora both too busy to make it.

"The fishing business is actually pretty nuanced. Just don't ask either of them about it unless you're ready to hear a long, impassioned story about two boys and one big net." Namine told her, taking a drink from her water bottle. "Riku is particularly good at making it sound like a daytime drama."

Kairi laughed. "It's good that they're so happy with what they do, though. A lot of people settle for 9-5 jobs that they feel miserable doing."

Namine acquiesced, spearing a cherry tomato from her salad with a plastic fork. "That's true. I also want to see this puppy of yours. She sounds adorable."

"She is." Kairi confirmed. "I really should have taken a picture to show you."

Namine popped the vegetable into her mouth. "I have to finish some last-minute art things for my classes today. The boys usually take Thursdays off, though. Maybe we can all go to the beach after school tomorrow and you can bring her with us."

Kairi thought that sounded really great, actually. She hadn't had a proper trip to the beach since arriving.

"I'm in. Just let me know when things get finalized."

* * *

 

Destiny Islands were beautiful in the late afternoon sun. Kairi had no reason to stay late at the school, so she headed home. Passing the small pet store on her way back, she took the opportunity to head inside and purchase puppy food for Shiva. She went home to retrieve the little dog, deciding to make the best of the gorgeous coastal weather by taking the energetic animal for a walk. Plus, puppies had natural functions of the body just like any other living thing; Shiva definitely needed to make a trip outside.

Kairi was impressed to find her apartment exactly how she'd left it. No puppy "accidents," either—Shiva had been napping on some spare blankets she'd sat on the floor as a doggie bed when she'd arrived home. Kairi made a mental note to get her a real one at some point to use during the day; she'd slept in the bed with Kairi the night before.

Shiva loved being led around on the leash, surprisingly. Kairi took her to a patch of grass and bushes that flanked her apartment building so nature could be appeased. After, the young, energetic dog bounded around as far as her restraint would let her, smelling every bench, trash bin, and streetlamp pole they passed.

It wasn't 5pm yet, and even during rush hour things were usually relatively calm here. It was such a departure from what Kairi was used to. No pushing, no shoving, no shouting. A walk around town was actually  _relaxing_  here.

Radiant Garden was comprised of several crowded boroughs, and Destiny seemed to be built very similarly. The center contained a large, urban city, while the communities on the coast were almost like small towns or villages separate to themselves. They were all Destiny, yet had a calm, peaceful atmosphere that probably contrasted with the large city that was hidden within.

Kairi was beginning to learn her way around the area. She recognized several familiar shops from her walks with Sora and Namine. She thought she had seen Wakka's earlier and the small ice cream shop Nam had taken her to a couple blocks back.

Kairi had been tempted to stop and get another sea salt pop. The heat wasn't unbearable, but it was definitely sweat worthy.

Getting closer to the oceanfront, the shops started thinning out. She figured the open-air market stalls were farther up ahead in what looked like a plaza. She'd never actually been there before, but she knew that was where Sora and Riku sold their wares. Sora had brought her through this part of town while taking her to the docks Monday; she recognized the dojo they'd passed.

Kairi debated keeping it straight and going to the market; she hadn't seen Riku since Monday—maybe he was at the stall.

But when she got to the tiny, cramped alley between the dojo and what looked like a craft shop, she completely froze, pulling on the leash to stop Shiva from trotting farther ahead. The Labrador obediently fell back.

It had only been in her peripheral, but she was sure she saw two people in the alley, people she knew. Kairi leaned against the earthen stone of the craft store, out of sight of the pair, braving a discreet peek around the corner to satisfy her curiosity. Shiva stayed at her feet and sat on her haunches, not moving a muscle.

Honestly, Kairi wished she hadn't looked.

About four yards away from where she was standing, she saw the girl from the other day—Yuffie, as Sora had called her. The petite girl had someone pressed close between her and the wall where the side exit to her dojo was. Yuffie and her companion were currently engaged in quite the  _enthusiastic_  tangle of lips.

Kairi recognized the other, too. He was tall with unruly chocolate brown hair. She could have spoken to the clear blue eyes she knew were there, but they were closed at the moment as both parties focused on the fervent kiss being shared between them.

 _Sora_.

He wasn't quite as eager as his partner, but he was definitely consenting, mouth readily accepting what she was offering. Yuffie's palms started at his broad shoulders, traveling down where they spread against his abdomen. They closed into a fist around the fabric of his white shirt as the kiss ended and the two of them broke apart.

Face hot with embarrassment from watching what looked like a private moment, Kairi quickly backed away from the corner. She expelled a deep breath she'd apparently been holding in, deciding it was best she vacated the block before one of them caught her eavesdropping. She picked Shiva up, thankful the dog hadn't noticed Sora and attempted to approach him. Kairi retreated back down the street in the direction she'd came, a peculiar knot settling into her stomach.

Sora dated, obviously. Most red-blooded young men his age did, and she certainly already knew about Selphie.

Lies and intimidation tactics from Selphie aside, his history with the waitress had been easy to digest. She'd never seen her and Sora together, their relationship ended about a month before Kairi had even set foot on the island, according to Namine.

But this was different. She hadn't missed the brief flirty body language from Yuffie to Sora when they'd passed by her dojo Monday but hadn't though much of it; Sora had merely greeted her in return like he would anyone. But seeing Yuffie's hands all over Sora only two days later, pushing him up against the side of her dojo while she kissed him like they weren't standing in full view of the entire street… Kairi hadn't been prepared for that.

The relaxing tone of her walk now irreparably shattered, she decided heading home was the best course of action.

* * *

 

Home proved to be a good place to unwind as her mind began to try and sift through the tangled web of her thoughts. Kairi certainly wasn't angry; she had no right to be. Sora didn't need her approval or permission when it came to entertaining women.

She was just surprised. She wasn't aware Sora had begun seeing anyone—he definitely hadn't mentioned a girlfriend and neither had Namine, whom she just had lunch with earlier in the day.

Sora was turning out to be one of those adult puzzles with several hundred pieces—the kind you glued into a frame and hung on the wall to commemorate figuring out. Kairi always had thought she possessed a pretty good ability to get a read on people, but he made her realize she maybe wasn't as discerning as she thought.

Sora was a wonderful person—one of the nicest she'd ever met in her life. That wasn't in dispute and never would be. He was kind, caring, and thoughtful, as evidenced by the puppy he'd gifted her that was currently lapping up water out of her dish near the kitchen.

Then the thought occurred to her: maybe Yuffie  _wasn't_  a girlfriend. Selphie had called him a "serial dater," so there was a chance he and Yuffie weren't exclusive at all. He didn't seem the type for casual affairs, but people were oftentimes different than they seemed. Maybe he was just blowing off steam.

Kairi stood from her spot on her recliner, feeling strangely wooden, and padded into the kitchen to put a kettle of water on the range. A strong cup of tea was in order.

She kneeled to the floor where Shiva was now rolled onto her back near her makeshift doggie bed and scratched the pup's belly.

"Why does that bother me?" she muttered aloud. That wasn't  _her_  kind of relationship, true, but she really knew nothing about what was going on between the two of them, and Sora certainly wasn't obligated to live his life by the statutes she placed on herself.

Shiva looked at her, eyes concerned and curious, but offered no council. Kairi tried to convince herself that the disquiet was due to the surprise of seeing Yuffie and Sora necking in the alley, but that was only partly true. She could be honest with herself in the confines of her mind at home, and she honestly felt it wasn't surprise, but… disillusionment. No jealousy, no anger, but it was like a veil had been torn away and she was seeing things more clearly.

The kettle whistled from the kitchen and Kairi ended up making the best cup of earl grey tea she'd had since that morning at Wakka's Place.

The caffeine and antioxidants did their job—she felt better, comforted. Not light and joyful like she'd been the day before, but like she finally understood something she'd been turning over in her head for the better part of a week.

Kairi fed Shiva and settled back into her chair with the cup of tea.

As if to prove to herself she wasn't falling into the same trap of being weird around him like she had after talking with Selphie, she sent him a message telling him that Shiva had done great on her first day of being home alone.

He replied rather quickly:  _ **That's awesome, Kai. I'm a bit caught up, so I won't be able to bring her a treat tonight like I promised yesterday, but I'll definitely see you both tomorrow and give her something then. They say positive reinforcement is crucial for puppies.**_

 _A bit caught up_ he said. Kairi felt tempted to message him something cryptic back because of what she knew he'd been doing earlier, but that would be feeding into a part of herself she didn't want to nourish, and Sora didn't deserve that cynicism.

**Looking forward to it. Goodnight.**

There was still the possibility for the beach trip tomorrow that Namine had suggested, so Kairi could even ask Sora himself about Yuffie if the curiosity got the better of her. She took another drink of tea and snapped open the paperback she'd been reading the other night, putting everything else to the side as she settled into the detective thriller within its pages.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading and I hope you're all liking this story so far. Seriously, I'm grateful if even just one person derives enjoyment from this story, so let me know about any feedback/comments/questions/suggestions you may have. I hope to see you all very soon for chapter 5. Also, Carly Rae Jepsen is criminally underrated and her new album Dedicated was on constant repeat during the writing of this chapter. Check it out if you like fun, romantic synth pop.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kairi spends an afternoon at the beach, learning more about Sora and the local legends.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, this chapter really got away from me. I really hadn't intended it to be this long, but here we are. I tried to cut some of it back in the proofreading process, but honestly couldn't find anything that wasn't important. Length aside, I hope you all enjoy chapter 5.

Thursday began much the same as any other day on the Destiny Islands, Kairi settling nicely into the augmented routine of having a dog. She got up, fed Shiva, and had cup of tea while the dog finished her kibble. Then Kairi took her to the patch of grass on the side of her building and let Shiva take care of her biological business.

The schoolteacher let the curious animal stroll and sniff for a bit before taking her back inside. She made one more cup of tea for the road, putting it in an insulated cup with the teabag tucked in nicely to let it steep to maximum strength before grabbing her bag and leaving the apartment.

She was surprised to find Riku at the bottom of the stairs, arms folded across his chest like he had been waiting for her.

"Something wrong?" Kairi asked, whirling the contents of her cup in a circular motion as she stopped beside him.

Riku let his arms fall to his side. "Does something have to be wrong for me to come see you? I haven't seen either you or Nam since Monday. Sora's had you both in monopoly this week."

Kairi flushed. "N-no, nothing has to be wrong. You can come see me whenever you want."

Riku laughed as Kairi took a drink of tea. "Good. Sora gets plenty of female attention. I at least expect to be on equal footing with you and Namine."

Kairi sputtered at that, nearly choking on her tea. Riku gave her a peculiar look, but she played it off with a cough like it had just went down the wrong pipe.

"You okay?" he asked, giving her a firm smack between her shoulder blades as if trying to restart her lungs.

"I'm fine, thanks." Kairi wheezed as she regained her breath enough to speak and Riku removed his hand.

It was surprising to hear Riku put words to the thought she'd had about their mutual friend since she'd met him, and do it so bluntly. Especially after seeing Yuffie gifting Sora her tongue while walking Shiva the day before. Maybe it was a well-known fact that Sora moved freely around the dating pool at Destiny Islands and she was just the last to know. Of course, female attention could mean he was just popular with them, and that wasn't hard to believe, either, as attractive and amiable as he was.

"How's the puppy?" Riku asked as they continued the practiced walk to the schoolhouse. "Sora told me the lunch thief was bunking with you now."

"Yeah, she's great. Lots of energy, but well-behaved." Kairi answered, glad that he'd broken her previous train of thought.

"That's good. Nam called me yesterday about the beach plans. Sounds great to me, I just need to make sure to tell Sora. He disappeared after we closed everything down yesterday and I turned in pretty early. And as usual, he'll probably sleep til noon since we take the day off."

The humidity was settling in to the sleepy, dewy air.

Kairi wondered idly if Riku knew Sora had been with Yuffie for at least part of his disappearance, or if he knew about Yuffie at all. She'd be lying if she said the whole thing didn't still bother her, but it was more like a nagging in the back of her mind now.

If things between Yuffie and Sora  _did_  end up getting serious, she would most likely have to get used to her being around. Kairi supposed she should double down her efforts to accept the situation as it was. Maybe Yuffie and herself would become fast friends if she could manage it.

"Let me know what time you want to meet." Kairi told him and the both of them hurried across the crosswalk once they got the greenlight, a few cars waiting at the light for them to pass.

"I'll message you." he offered her a cheeky smile as he continued. "We're off today so we would really just be waiting on you and Nam."

When Kairi and Riku finally arrived at their destination, he stopped at the corner of the hallway that led to the art room.

"I'll be back at lunch. Want me to bring you anything?" He offered. "I'm not sure what Namine wants but it'll probably be something from Wakka's. Or I could have Sora make you one of those grilled cheeses he swears by."

Kairi laughed. "You're sweet to offer, but I think I'm okay."

Riku shrugged his shoulders dismissively. "If you're sure… Let me know if you change your mind."

Kairi bit her lip thoughtfully. "Also, thank you for Monday. I don't think I would have been honest with Sora if not for you."

Riku shook his head. "I didn't do anything but give you his number. You did the rest."

"That's not true," she insisted. "You listened to me that morning and made me feel like I hadn't made a complete idiot of myself. You're rational and that's exactly what I needed."

Kairi saw the lightest tint of pink in Riku's cheeks.

"Stop it, Ms. Hart. You're doing that encouraging teacher thing and it's embarrassing me."

Kairi sighed, relenting. "Fine, but you did help me a lot and I'm grateful."

Riku smiled despite his protests, jade green eyes holding a peculiar softness. He tilted his head to the side thoughtfully.

"Honestly, I didn't think there were other people like Sora and Namine out there. We haven't even known each other a week yet and I can tell you're one of the few. It's weird, the last real friend I made was Namine, and that was nearly 18 years ago, but you show up and it's like when you're a kid and you meet someone on the playground—friendship just shifts into place with no effort."

Kairi couldn't help but agree. Friendship had come easily with all three of them. She was closer with these people she hadn't even known a week than she had been with work colleagues back in Radiant Garden that she'd known for years.

She playfully swatted at Riku. "Get to art class before I send you to Ms. Gainsborough's office."

He bowed slightly, laughing. "Yes, ma'am."

* * *

 

Her students were continuing their improvement. Kairi started them on the first half of the alphabet, practicing writing the letters while sounding them out.

Little Noctis was having more trouble than the rest of the students, so she sat beside him, helping guide his pencil around the curve of a letter.

"S'hard." the boy murmured. "How do people do this?"

Kairi tapped the desk with emphasis. "Practice, Noctis. Everything is hard before it's easy."

"Hmph."

The red-head had to struggle not to smile. He was so headstrong; she felt confident the boy could do anything he had the inclination to.

"I'll do my best to help you here, but would your parents be willing to work with you at home?" Kairi asked, twirling her own pencil around her thumb. "I can send you extra things. Not homework or anything… just little exercises to get these letter shapes to stick."

Noctis shrugged slumping further into his seat. "Mom's gone. Dad is usually at work. I dunno… maybe Cor?"

Kairi looked at Noctis sympathetically. She wasn't sure who Cor was… a caretaker, maybe? His parents being scarce explained a lot of his behavior. He wasn't a bad kid, but he'd always struck her as a bit lonelier than the rest of the children. She couldn't make Noctis' father more available for him, but she could encourage him to put his mind to school so it didn't dominate his thoughts at home.

Just as she was going to ask if he wanted her to send the extra material home anyway, Yuna's hand shot up from across the room to tell her that the boy behind her was yanking on her hair.

Of course, Kairi immediately went to discipline the boy, but Tidus was already out of his seat and leaping to his friend's defense.

"Why doncha try pulling  _my_  hair, Noel?!" Kairi heard him challenge before she shooed the small blitzballer back to his seat.

While reading the riot act to Noel who feigned ignorance about the whole situation, Kairi couldn't stop her mind from going back to Noctis. The boy had stopped practicing his letters and was currently looking out of the window near his seat as if in a trance.

Kairi couldn't help but think he looked lost. Her heart went out to him; she was young when both her and Xion went to live with Gran, but she remembered the loneliness. Kairi wondered if she ever looked like Noctis did and if her teachers ever watched her and just felt  _sad_.

* * *

 

"I brought you something anyway, Kairi. Nam tried to say she didn't want anything, which usually means she ends up eating half  _my_  lunch." Riku pushed a box towards Kairi as the three of them sat at the usual spot in the lunchroom. "If you're the same way and you both ate half my lunch, that means I'd have to steal a peanut butter and jelly from one of your students, and I really don't want to get in trouble with Aerith."

Namine nudged him with her shoulder. "He's lying, Kairi. He'd love that. She was three years ahead of us and he had the biggest crush on her in high school."

Kairi arched a brow, playing along. "Oh really? Maybe I  _should_  have sent you to the principal's office this morning, Riku."

Riku grimaced and crossed his arms, slouching in his seat. "You're so mean, Nam. That was ages ago."

Namine took a bite of what Riku brought her, which was some sort of wrap.

"I'm just teasing." she amended, a smile still playing on her lips. "Honestly, if her and Zack weren't iron-clad, I'd tell you to go for your high school dream."

Riku sobered up a bit, voice soft and measured. "A lot has changed since high school. I didn't have my head on straight back then. Not looking for a glossy, teenage fantasy anymore."

Namine was preoccupied with her wrap and didn't notice the way his green eyes flitted towards her and then away again, but Kairi did.

The red-head's eyebrow arch was genuine this time as she pondered the reason for the dubious look. She busied herself with opening the box Riku brought her, sandwich forgotten. It turned out to be a chicken potpie and the savory smell teased her olfactory senses.

"I wasn't sure what you liked, figured a potpie was inoffensive enough." Riku explained, finishing his pout and brood. "Hope it's okay."

Kairi broke through the flaky surface with her fork, "I love them, actually." she admitted. "I haven't had one in a long time. Thank you; it looks great."

"Yes, thanks, Riku." Namine parroted. "I don't know if I could have handled another salad. Had one for lunch  _and_  dinner yesterday."

Kairi went to grab her satchel from where it was draped around the back of her chair. "Oh, what do I owe you for lunch, Riku?"

Riku swatted her hand from where it reached between them. "Your money is no good to me." he informed her. "But if you meet me and Sora at the big pier at about four, we'll call it even. He was absolutely giddy when I told him you were coming, the big sap."

Kairi chewed the first bite of her potpie thoughtfully, the smooth, familiar creaminess much appreciated over her usual sandwich.

He was looking forward to seeing her, according to Riku. Kairi felt the same, if she was being honest. Sora had a certain magnetism to him. As much of an enigma as he was to Kairi, she liked spending time with him. She still didn't know what to make of what she saw in town yesterday, but she was determined not to let the memory of Yuffie all over Sora in that alley cast a pall over their afternoon plans.

If he had found someone and was happy, friendship dictated that she should support him, right?

* * *

 

The rest of the school day proceeded with little excitement. Aerith sent an email out to the entire faculty right after the children were dismissed, reminding them of the next week's lesson plans being due Saturday so they could be approved for the following week.

Kairi left school at about half an hour after three in the afternoon and didn't make it home until fifteen minutes before 4. She would probably be a little late in meeting the others.

Kairi rummaged through her drawers, trying to decide what was appropriate beach attire. She really didn't plan on getting into the water; she was perfectly happy just spending time with everyone and looking into the vast expanse of the ocean. Then again, she was accident prone and if she stepped anywhere near the ocean, there was a real possibility she would fall in. She dragged out the one swimsuit she owned; a pink one piece.

Kairi dug around further in and was relieved that she had apparently kept and brought the skirt wrap that she'd bought with it when she'd downsized her closet before moving. Radiant Garden was landlocked so there were no beaches there, but Vanitas had rented a lake house in neighboring Twilight Town for their five-year anniversary during the summer of that year. She'd bought the swimsuit set before they'd left.

Kairi sat on the bed, fingering the pink material as she remembered that week a little over a year ago. Things were still good between them then; things wouldn't become tense until the last six months or so. She wasn't sure if she wanted to burn the swimsuit along with all the memories or cling to them even harder.

In the end, Kairi changed into the suit anyway. She knotted the coverlet around her hips and decided the best way to try and put the past behind her was to immerse herself in the present. It had been extremely hard back in Radiant Garden; everywhere she turned there were reminders of Vanitas. Her apartment—their apartment—contained phantoms of him in every corner: his side of the bed that she had slept alone in after it all had ended, his favorite coffee mug in the cupboard he'd left behind. Even around town she would walk by the restaurants they frequented and almost swore she saw the mirage of them at their usual seats by the window… Mundane things had held her captive for those two months.

Kairi gathered a beach towel and got Shiva ready to leave, determined to make new memories.

* * *

 

It wasn't until she got to the beach that she remembered she hadn't done much exploring to familiarize herself with the beach. She knew how to get to  _Oathkeeper's_  dock and not much else, but the area wasn't huge, and she was sure she saw the large pier Riku had mentioned several dozen yards farther along the shoreline. At the very least she had three numbers she could call for precise directions if needed.

But Shiva seemed to enjoy the fresh air and trotting along the wet sand, so Kairi found herself enjoying it to. It was just about ten minutes when Kairi reached the pier and felt relieved when she saw two familiar figures racing back and forth from a palm tree further inland to where the sand became dense and dark from the tide.

Not far away from the palm she saw Namine in a white dress and large lavender hat, trying to drive a shade umbrella into the sand. From what Kairi could gather, she'd also just arrived and wasn't having much success driving the staked end into the warm, shifting earth.

Shiva, instantly excited by Riku and Sora having their little race, strained against her leash to bound over to them. Kairi indulged her and began walking in their direction.

Namine, absorbed in her task as she was, didn't notice Kairi beside her at first, stabbing the ground with the heavy umbrella to lackluster results. The blonde huffed in frustration, pushing back a tuft of blonde hair that fell in her face from the exertion.

"Need help, Nam?" Kairi asked, winding Shiva's leash around her fist a couple times so Shiva couldn't get far beyond where she was standing. The puppy barked in protest, still fixated on Sora and Riku kicking up sand back and forth across the beach.

Namine stopped what she was doing immediately, grinning at her. "Kairi! You made it! And yeah, I do think I need a little help."

Kairi made to put down her towel and find a place to tie Shiva so she could help Namine, but the other woman was already inhaling deeply.

"Sora!" she called loudly across the calm ocean air.

Like a soldier called to attention, the brunette, who was currently kneeling at the base of the palm tree like he was about to start another race with Riku, immediately abandoned his stance and stood up. Sora jogged quickly to them, standing board straight with his arms stiffly at his side when he arrived like he was awaiting orders.

He did smile at Kairi, though. "Hey. We were starting to worry about you."

Namine tugged on the sleeve of his yellow t-shirt. "You can talk to Kairi after you get our umbrellas into the sand."

Sora played along, saluting, then made quick work of driving the two umbrellas into the ground. When he finished, Kairi unhooked Shiva from her leash and the dog immediately ran to Sora, who kneeled to the ground to pet her.

"Hey, Shiva! Are you happy to see me? Good girl!"

Kairi unfolded her large beach towel and spread it out under one of the umbrellas.

"Is it okay to turn her loose like that?" Namine asked her, already seated on her towel and pulling out what looked like a large sketch book.

Kairi waved off the concern. "I think so. She won't move too far from Sora."

Sure enough, Sora had gotten up and ran the several yards to the edge of the water, Shiva hot on his heels. Riku finally trudged over from the palm tree after Sora never returned to their race and plopped down next to Namine, still breathing heavily.

"Who won?" Namine asked, not looking up from where she was fishing a pencil from her bag.

Riku carded a hand through his sweat dampened silver hair and dipped his head back with a shake. "We were 2-2." came the answering grumble.

"Children." Namine murmured.

Kairi giggled. "I think it's cute that two grown men are still in touch with their playful sides."

Riku thumped the back of Namine's sketch book. "See? Kairi gets it."

"Kairi hasn't been referee for your little competitions for nearly 18 years, either." Namine retorted, but Kairi could tell there was no real bite behind it.

Riku laughed for a moment before jerking his head in the direction of Sora, who was playfully running down the beach with Shiva. "Cute dog, Kairi. I'm glad Sora has finally found someone else who functions on the same excitement level as him."

The red-head shook her head, amused, and Namine hummed, hands guiding her pencil in long strokes over her paper. Kairi wondered what she was drawing.

"Nam, you're not gonna sit under this umbrella and do your art stuff all afternoon, are you?"

Kairi leaned farther into the conversation. "I'd kinda like to see what she's drawing."

Riku sighed. "She does this all the time. At least come take a walk or something and enjoy the sun before you get too far into it."

Namine finally looked up and slipped her drawing back in her large bag. "If I do, will you let me concentrate on this in peace afterward? You know the beach makes me want to sketch."

"Of course," Riku assured her, standing to his feet and brushing the sand off his grey swim shorts.

Namine took an aerosol can out of her bag and sprayed the bare skin her light dress didn't cover. She then handed the can to Kairi.

"It's sunscreen." Namine explained as Kairi accepted it. "You seem like you burn pretty easily too. Definitely put it on if you move from under the shade."

The artist finally stood, pushing at Riku's shoulder. "Well, take me on this magical walk, Riku."

Riku looked back at Kairi. "We'll be back in a few. Looks like Sora is coming back to keep you company."

Just as Riku and Namine had walked far enough to be out of earshot, Sora came sprinting towards her with Shiva in tow, kicking up warm sand the whole way.

He tossed his lemon yellow shirt on top of Namine's bag, apparently having taken it off before he took a dip into the ocean. His brown spikes were heavy and flat against his head, tan skin covered in rivulets of sea water.

Sora flopped down heavily onto Namine's beach towel beside Kairi, panting from having ran the whole way back. She smelled the brine clinging to his skin as he laboriously pulled air into his lungs. Shiva settled down right at his side and began to lick his forearm for the excess moisture.

Kairi watched his chest rise and fall with deep breaths for a few moments longer, the prominent muscles in his abdomen contracting and retracting.

Sora eventually sat up slightly after he was comfortable again, rolling onto his side slightly to face her.

"Mm. Glad you made it." he repeated what he'd been trying to say earlier, idly scratching Shiva behind the ears. "Was getting a little worried. You didn't have too much trouble finding the pier, did you?"

Kairi drew a few random shapes in the patch of sand between them, watching the vast expanse of the ocean. "Not too much. The walk was pretty relaxing. Shiva enjoyed it. How has your day off been so far?"

"Good." Sora answered. "I slept in. When I woke up, Riku told me you all wanted to go to the beach. There were some other plans up in the air, but I pushed 'em back so I could spend as much time as I wanted with you guys."

Kairi was asking the question before she could stop herself.

"Those other plans involve the girl at the dojo? Yuffie?"

If Sora had been trying to hide his surprise, he'd done a poor job of it, mouth falling open slightly. "Y-yeah, actually. How'd you know?"

Kairi pursed her lips, regretting saying anything. She had been determined not to pry about Yuffie at all, but her mouth beat her to it.

"I… saw you guys together yesterday while walking Shiva. Just a lucky guess."

Sora nodded, accepting her answer, no trace of embarrassment on his face. It seemed like the thought hadn't even occurred to him that she had seen the kiss. "When we ran into her Monday, she ended up calling me that night after I left your apartment. Wanted to see me, she said, so I stopped by the dojo after Riku and I finished a little earlier than usual yesterday. Hung around until she closed up, then she invited me to dinner at her place."

Kairi listened intently. That would explain why Riku didn't see much of him yesterday.

"Sounds cozy." she commented, trying to sound supportive. "Yuffie… seems nice."

Sora clicked his tongue. "She is. Loves go out and have a good time more than just hanging around. She wanted to go dancing at some club in the city tonight, but I told her I needed a raincheck."

"You don't sound thrilled by that." Kairi blurted, then immediately inwardly scolded herself for sounding so cynical and letting her mouth move faster than her brain yet again.

Sora didn't seem offended, only chuckled quietly. "I guess you're right. Not big on nightlife, but I figured we should do something she likes."

"Well, good luck. I'm glad you seem happy with Yuffie."

Sora brushed some sand off his swim shorts. They were red with little yellow star-shaped fruit adorning them. "Thanks. We'll see how things go. This is actually our second try. We were seeing each other for a little while some months back."

"Something happen?" Kairi asked, a bit surprised to find herself now asking questions about his relationship with Yuffie.

Sora shook his head. "No, not really. We weren't serious; I wouldn't even say we had been  _dating_. But I did end up meeting someone around that time, so things with Yuffie ended up running their natural course."

Kairi assumed that "someone" must have been referring to Selphie, but she didn't ask for clarification and Sora didn't offer it.

"Maybe the second time will be the charm." she encouraged, trying to make up for prodding into his business, but Kairi realized that the sentiment was half-hearted. She supposed a petty part of her was still suspicious of how quickly Yuffie apparently moved, even though Sora mentioned that this wasn't the first time they'd been involved with each other.

Sora rubbed Shiva's side, who had been lulled to sleep by his petting. "You know, it's funny. It was almost on a whim I agreed to see her again. My mother has always said I'm an idealist when it comes to this sort of thing."

Kairi blinked at him. "An idealist? About what?"

"Love, of course. I've always thought that when you meet the right person, there's supposed to be this lightning strike, you know? No questions, no need for testing the waters. You just  _know_."

Kairi tilted her head at him, interested. "You believe in love at first sight?"

Sora ran a hand through his brown spikes. "Hmm. I kinda do, but what I'm talking about doesn't necessarily have to be immediate. I usually give it a few weeks. If I don't feel that  _lightning_  moment between us by then, I see that as an indication that she isn't the one for me. It's best to just end things as friends and move on in the hopes it'll happen with the next girl, right? Mom has always disagreed, though. She claims there is no epiphany moment for the real thing; there is only affection and commitment. She says if I wait for some spiritual cataclysm, I'll never find someone to settle down with."

Kairi chewed her bottom lip thoughtfully. That seemed to explain the serial dating behavior Selphie described. Maybe Sora wasn't a playboy, but was merely chasing a sensation that not many experienced.

"I know, it's stupid, believing in stuff like that as a grown man." Sora murmured sheepishly. "So that's why I decided to give things another shot with Yuffie, to see if I really am entertaining a pipe dream by believing in some crazy internal jolt of destiny."

Kairi drew another symbol in the sand, feeling like she understood Sora better now than she did last week. "I don't think it's stupid. Whatever you mom says, I hope you find your lightning strike."

Sora didn't smile or laugh like Kairi expected him to, he just continued to gently scratch the crown of Shiva's head. "Mm. Thanks. Oh, and speaking of mom, I went to see her earlier—she's been trying to get me to fix her leaky faucet. I told her about you and she'd really like to meet you."

Kairi's head snapped over to him. "M-meet  _me_?"

Sora laughed. "Hey, no pressure. You don't have to if you don't want to. But she does like to meet my friends since I have so few close ones. She usually has me, Riku and Namine over for a meal on Sunday about once a month. You're invited to the next one."

Kairi tipped her head back, looking at the underside of the umbrella above her as she tried to gather herself. Why did this seem like such a big deal to her? It was a perfectly reasonable request, but she only ever brought boyfriends home to her family, and the only boyfriend that had been serious enough to bother with had been Vanitas.

Kairi never had to deal with the stress of meeting Vanitas' family. His father had raised him alone and Vanitas hadn't seen him since leaving home immediately after high school. They hadn't been on good terms.

She felt Sora sit up and move closer to her. She felt their proximity even without looking.

"God, Kairi, I didn't mean to upset you." he began to babble. "I know it's kinda weird; people only usually do this with romantic relationships, and I'm not gonna lie, my mother had the wrong idea at first, but I promise I set her straight. Let's uh… let's just forget I said anything. I'm sorry."

His nervous apology is what brought her back. Kairi shook her head, returning to the present from her thoughts as her eyes settled back on him. Sora was sitting cross-legged, having moved a sleeping Shiva to his lap.

"I'm not upset. A little nervous, honestly, but I'd like to meet your mom."

Sora exhaled deeply at that, relieved. "Really? She's great, I promise, so you don't need to feel nervous. I'll let you know when exactly once there's something more concrete."

"What's concrete? What are we talking about?"

A familiar but unexpected voice broke into the conversation. Kairi broke away from looking at Sora to find that Riku and Namine had returned from their walk.

"We were talking about Yuffie; my mom. Mom wants Kairi to come to dinner with us one Sunday."

Namine plopped down on her vacant towel, a sour look on her face. "The dinner is a great idea, but why were you talking about  _Yuffie_?"

Riku sat down at the foot of Namine's towel. "Sora… don't tell me…"

Sora shrugged. "Ran into her a few days ago. Went to see her yesterday. I'm just playing it by ear."

Namine groaned, and Kairi thought it was pretty obvious she and Riku weren't big fans of Yuffie, either.

"You know how she is, Sora." Riku warned him. "Did Selphie scramble your egg or something?"

Kairi snapped her mouth tightly shut so her jaw wouldn't hit the ground. All the time she'd spent avoiding mentioning his past with Selphie to him, and Riku just spit it out like it was the shell of a sunflower seed.

Sora huffed at that. "No, she didn't. I remember  _very well_  how it was with Yuffie before. But I'm a big boy; I can handle it. Maybe her wanting to see me again was some sort of sign that she wants something more than just fun this time around."

Namine sighed, pulling her sketch out of her bag. "Well, I got my toes wet just like Riku wanted, and now I'm going to finish this sketch. I love you, Sora, but your taste in women leaves much to be desired."

"What about you and Kairi, then?"

Riku hummed. "We got lucky with these two. Speaking of, go show Kairi around the beach or something. She doesn't want to spend her day talking about you and that handsy pint-sized karate master."

Kairi was once again shocked by Riku's candor—his and Namine's, actually. It seemed like a familiar conversation between the three of them.

Sora scowled, but gently placed Shiva near Riku's feet, who immediately began to softly stroke her in Sora's absence. Shiva's short legs stretched out, but she remained asleep. Kairi foresaw her dog was going to end up very spoiled.

Sora stood, folding his arms above his head. "Wanna stretch your legs for a bit?"

"Sure."

Remembering Namine's advice because, yes, her skin  _did_  burn very easily, she took the aerosol sunscreen and used it to cover her bare arms as well as her shoulders and upper back. Once she finished, Sora offered his hand to pull her up, which she accepted and was hoisted rather smoothly to her feet.

The sun bore down on her now that she was no longer under the protective shade of the umbrella. Sora didn't immediately let go of her hand.

"C'mon, near the water. There's something I wanna show you." he lightly tugged her in the direction he began walking before dropping his hold on her. Kairi followed, and he slowed his gait so that she could fall in line beside him. Shiva didn't stir from her comfortable position at Riku's feet, his affectionate strokes keeping the pup lax and lazy

Kairi left her flip flops at her spot under the umbrella and was enjoying the warm shifting sands beneath her feet. The low groan of the ocean waves lapping at the shoreline as they approached called her attention to the horizon. She felt infinitely small next to the seemingly endless expanse of ocean and found herself looking into the big blue void, almost in a trance.

Kairi was at least paying well enough attention to notice that Sora had stopped walking, so she did too, but never took her eyes off the sea. It was easy to forget her problems while imagining how great and all-encompassing the view here was. The mainland wasn't far; she could see its dark speck from where she'd boarded the ferry to come to the Destiny Islands in the distance.

"Kairi? You okay?" Sora asked her, breaking the ocean's spell upon her.

She looked at him, nodding. "I'm fine. Just enjoying the view."

It wasn't a complete lie, even if she was feeling more pensive than joyful. Radiant Garden and all its trappings seemed a million miles away.

Sora knelt in the wet sand, holding something in his fist. He stood and straightened, opening his hand to her palm side up.

In it laid a small shell with a vibrant color palette of pink, blue, and yellow. It was almost tear shaped. With his encouraging blue eyes urging her, she took it from him.

"It's a Thalassa shell." he explained to her. "Native to these islands. Legends say sailors used to make them into charms that brought them luck and safety on their journeys."

Kairi held the shell between her fingers, admiring how nature had crafted such a beautiful, natural thing. "Wow, Sora. That's incredible. It's so colorful."

"I want you to have it," Sora encouraged her. "I've always thought Thalassa shells were pretty special. Keep it as a good luck charm like those sailors used to. You're on a new journey too, now. Me and the others will do our best to make sure you're safe, but a little extra insurance never hurt, right?"

Sora said it that unbashful way he said everything, and Kairi found herself balking at his words, but not entirely in a bad way.

"That's sweet, Sora… I'll put it right next to the clay piece Namine made for me."

Kairi cradled the small, vibrant shell. Sora beamed at her, stepping a little farther into the water, letting the cool waves lap against his ankles.

Admittedly, due to the fact that she and Vanitas had been together for her entire adult life, she really hadn't had many male friends outside of casual pleasantness with work colleagues. Vanitas had never explicitly told Kairi she couldn't have friends of the opposite sex, but she also knew going out alone with a male friend would have been an almost impossible sell.

She was unused to having a man who wasn't her longtime partner talking to her like Sora did. Honestly, even after six years Vanitas wasn't as forthcoming with his intentions and feelings. Sora didn't mince words and he said what he felt without a shred of anxiety about the vulnerability it gave way to. In short, she had no idea how to navigate her burgeoning friendships with Riku and Sora, with special emphasis on the latter. Sora was particularly talented at getting her flustered.

Kairi couldn't decide whether it was refreshing or terrifying.

"Maybe sometime soon, I'll show you the secret place if you want." she heard him speak over the constant hum of the surf.

Kairi followed behind him, stepping into the cool water. The ebb and flow didn't disappoint; the temperate ocean waves coming and going made the hot spring day feel refreshing instead of stifling.

"The secret place?" she asked, brushing a pesky strand of hair behind her ear that kept getting tousled in front of her face by the sea breeze.

Sora nodded. "Me, Riku and Namine have a little spot on the beach no one else really bothers. We used to hang out there a lot when we were little, and even through to high school. Good place to think, relax. You'd like it. It's a little ways off from this part of the beach, though."

Kairi brushed her thumb across the ridged surface of her Thalassa shell. "That sounds nice. I'd like to see it."

Sora looked happy to hear that. "Then maybe we can manage it in the next couple of weeks. You name the day."

"Sounds like a plan." she affirmed.

They continued their trek down the beach, staying far enough out to where they were still wading in the ankle-deep surf, the small waves spraying her calves and coverlet.

"Ms. Hart?" a small voice questioned.

Kairi's attention turned back towards the beach, where she saw a little boy with dark ebony hair holding a small fishing rod and tackle box.

"Noctis?" she began to approach the boy, Sora pocketing his hands in his patterned swim shorts and following close behind her. Once it became apparent that Sora was with her, the boy seemed less interested in his teacher and more preoccupied with the man following her.

"I've seen you around school." Noctis commented once they all stood together, eyes zeroed in on Sora.

"Hey, little bud. You one of Ms. Hart's kids?"

Noctis nodded, setting down his dark blue tackle box. "Mhmm. And you must be her bigfooted bodyguard."

Sora's mouth gaped at that, then he quickly looked down at his feet, shuffling them almost self-consciously.

"Noctis!" Kairi scolded her student. "That was very impolite. This is my friend and he deserves the same amount of respect you show me. I think you owe him an apology."

"You're right. I'm sorry,  _Mr_. Bigfoot."

Kairi was about to scold him further but was stopped by Sora's hand on her bare shoulder. He chuckled, finally getting over his initial embarrassment, extending his hand to Noctis.

"Oi, I love nicknames. Nice to meet you, Squirt."

Noctis idly shook Sora's hand as he spoke to Kairi. "He buy you ice cream?"

Kairi was perturbed by the usually mellow boy's petulant behavior. She opened her mouth to correct him again, but Sora didn't give her the chance.

"I'll buy her ice cream if she wants it." he interjected, folding his arms. "Why you ask?"

"Cause if I'm gonna lose to you, you better at least know how to be a good boyfriend."

Just as Kairi was sure she was about to die of embarrassment, Sora's pleasant laugh bubbled from within his chest. "I'm just her friend, Squirt. But I'm glad you're looking out for Ms. Hart, too."

The boy looked unconvinced and Kairi was at a loss. Was Sora really humoring Noctis by having this conversation with him? She decided it was well past time for a subject change.

"Noctis? Who are you here with? Your dad?"

The kindergartener gestured down the beach a few yards away to a tall man with short, sandy colored hair. He looked to be absorbed in deep conversation on his phone, pacing back and forth.

"Nah, I'm here with Cor. He's been promising to take me fishing at the pier for a long time. We finally got here and now I gotta wait."

Kairi suddenly felt her heart clench for Noctis. He had been looking forward to an afternoon of fishing before his caretaker had gotten too busy. Noctis' bout of irritability was likely a result of that.

She glanced over at Sora and his blue eyes were dark with sympathy for the boy.

"Well, I should get back before I get in trouble for not standing close by." Noctis told them. "Bye Ms. Heart, bye Mr. Bigfoot."

Even though he used the unorthodox nickname, it didn't have any of the previous dig.

"See ya later, Squirt. Catch a big one for us, 'kay?"

Noctis nodded woodenly, then gathered his fishing supplies and walked back up the beach to where Cor was still talking on the phone

Kairi bit her lip, waiting until he was out of earshot before speaking. "I'm a little worried about him. He seems so sad to be so young."

"Mmm." Sora rumbled in reply, but she could tell he was thinking.

Kairi continued to wonder what the small child's situation could be like, but then remembered she was living in a tight-knit community where everyone knew everyone else.

"Sora, do you know anything about the Caelums?" she asked.

Sora whistled. "Oh, wow. Is the little guy a Caelum?"

Their walk down the beach continued as did the conversation. They fell naturally in line with each other, Kairi walking with her shoulders brushing Sora's without really noticing, answering his question with a nod.

"Regis Caelum  _does_  have a little boy, I forgot that." he mused out loud. "I know he's a widower, owns a big financial firm in the city. I believe that's where he lives, too. Very wealthy. He's originally from our little piece of Destiny Islands here, so people tend to keep track of him."

So her initial impression that Noctis' mother had passed had been right, it seemed. She had really hoped to be wrong.

Kairi figured maybe the elder Caelum just wanted to bring Noctis to the elementary school here. Seemed like Aerith had told her there was another in the city, which if what Sora was saying was true, would be logistically better.

"Seems like Mr. Caelum works so frequently that Noctis is primarily taken care of by that man." Kairi murmured. "Maybe he's an assistant of some sort?"

"You really care about your students." Sora observed. "I told you you're good at what you do."

There was that reckless praise again.

"Of course I care about them. You don't go into teaching for the money."

Sora laughed. "I'm aware. But I mean, you _really_ care. About their well-being, their home-lives… Just don't let it weigh you down, okay? You seem like the type to lose sleep over this stuff. Noctis seems healthy and taken care of, if a little lonely."

Kairi wasn't convinced that health and stability made a difference. "Sometimes loneliness makes the good in life seem far away."

Sora suddenly took two large strides and stepped out in front of her, blocking her path with his body. She had to stop on dime to avoid colliding with his front, and that was only accomplished by bracing her arms against the solid wall of his chest. Kairi blinked up at him, confused and flustered by the sudden intrusion.

"Whatever happened in the past, you're not alone and neither is Noctis; not anymore." unlike her, he seemed unfazed by their proximity and made no effort to move one way or the other. "I'm no teacher but if you need me to help in any way, I'll do it."

Kairi had been speaking from experience as well as observation but hadn't meant to make it so obvious in front of Sora. She really  _was_  trying to move on from everything, but it seemed as if she still had a long way to go.

The warmth of Sora's bare skin against her arms made her remember that there was hardly any space between them, and she quickly remembered she had the ability to move away, so she did.

Sora, as if finally noticing her discomfort, rubbed the back of his neck. "Oh, sorry. Wasn't thinking. You just looked so sad when you talked about loneliness, it reminded me of Riku. He went through a dark patch back when we were in high school, started feeling pressured to the point where he pulled away from me and Nam. We dragged him back to us kicking and screaming, but he always talked about feeling lonely all the time even though we were right there beside him. It just… kinda scared me to hear you say what you did, because I never want you to feel like Riku did back then."

Things between them got quiet again as Kairi processed. Sora had been trying to comfort her but now she somehow felt like she should be comforting  _him_.

She held up the Thalassa shell and managed a smile. "It's okay, really. The past bothers me sometimes, but it's nothing like it was before, promise. Days like this make all the difference. I've got my good luck charm; I'll be fine."

Truthfully, Kairi still wasn't completely convinced, but she was a little more convinced now than she had been two weeks ago. Maybe that was point.

Sora seemed to be heading toward a small outcropping. It wasn't made up of beach sand, but a clump of fertile earth where lush grass grew and a big, strangely bent tree stood tall.

"Go at your own pace, Kairi." he encouraged her. "I don't want you to ever pretend you're not hurting for my sake; I just want you to know that you don't have to face it by yourself."

That gave Kairi pause. Xion had been extremely understanding after she found herself suddenly alone after Vanitas had left, but Kairi could also tell that in the couple of weeks before she left for Destiny, Xion had been at a loss.

Of course, her sister understood that Kairi couldn't make six years' worth of love and trust that had been ripped away scab and heal overnight, but after two months Xion's sadness had morphed. Her dislike for Vanitas and what he had done festered until Xion became perturbed that Kairi was still allowing herself to mourn the vacancy he left in her life.

Kairi couldn't blame her, either. Kairi felt the same frustration with herself some days. Yet Sora seemed to understand, or at least sympathize. She was starting to see he had an uncanny gift for bonding with people. Kairi was still hesitant when it came to him in some ways—he was earnest and it made her feel off balance at times, but the suspicion she once felt towards him had almost completely evaporated.

The two of them made it to the small outcropping and Sora immediately stepped up onto the lush plot of earth. He helped her up and Kairi's eyes fell on the large palm, which was so severely bent that the trunk was almost completely horizontal—perfect for sitting and staring at the ocean.

Which they did. She followed Sora's lead and hoisted herself up to sit on the strong, sturdy tree.

"This is the best view of the sunset on the island." he told her over the lull of the ocean.

Kairi once again became fixated on watching the almost impossible to pinpoint line where the blue ocean gave way to the mainland as it stretched along its length. She saw a couple boats on the water, vessels like  _Oathkeeper_. She saw ferries like the one she herself had been on about a week ago, boating visitors to and from.

"I bet." Kairi spoke softly, but they were close enough where she was sure Sora heard her. The beach had a few visitors besides themselves, but not very many. She didn't see Cor or Noctis anymore, and she wondered if they were on the big pier fishing somewhere out of sight, or if the phone call had taken them away from the leisurely activity altogether.

The fronds of the palm weren't very high above her because of how bent the tree was, and Kairi noticed a star-shaped fruit hung heavy and ripe from its branches. She recognized them as the same fruit that emblazoned Sora's red swim shorts.

"What kind of fruit is this?" she asked him, reaching up and palming one of the low hanging ones.

Sora turned his attention from the vista in front of them and looked to see what she was talking about.

"Oh, those are paopu fruit. Native plants with one of our legends attached to it."

The name sounded vaguely familiar. She was educated, so she had probably read about it in a book about the locales around her, but she couldn't place the legend he was talking about.

Kairi pressed her lips into a thin line. "Oh, did the sailors make pies with these?"

Sora smirked at her joke but had a wistful look on his face. "Close, but not quite. They say that when two people share one, their destinies intertwine. They'll always be a part of each other's lives."

He grew quiet for just a moment, watching her gently handle the fruit but not pick it. "I've always loved the essence of that legend—makes me feel like destiny and lightning strikes  _do_  exist. Like maybe there  _are_  unexplainable phenomena that make it possible for good things to happen, even when the bad tries to get in the way."

Sora's deep blue eyes glazed a bit after he finished speaking, like he was somewhere else entirely, watching the paopu as if under a spell.

"Jeez, Sora. I said take her for a walk, not smuggle her away for yourself."

A pleasantly deep voice broke through the ocean calm and thick wall of emotion that had rooted itself between them. Kairi turned to see Namine carrying Shiva while Riku carried the uprooted umbrellas and the rest of their things.

Sora snorted. "We haven't been gone that long, and I knew the two of you would know where to find us."

This was a special spot for the three of them, Kairi deduced.

Namine handed Shiva off to Riku as she hauled herself up on the bent trunk beside Kairi. Riku had set all their beach supplies down and opted to lean against the paopu fruit tree instead of sitting, cradling a wide-awake Shiva under the crook of his arm.

"Feels like it's been too long since we've watched the sunset from here." Namine commented, blonde hair blowing in a refreshing breeze that had suddenly picked up. "It's only just after six but I vote we stay another hour so we can fix that."

Sora made a sound of agreement, leaning into Kairi slightly. "What about you? You want to go home now, or do you want to stay a little longer?"

"I think I'd like to see this sunset."

Riku dug his heels into the sand, getting comfortable in his spot. "It's a yes from me, too. Looks like it's unanimous, then."

They stayed another hour, making idle conversation. There were a few times the four of them slipped into comfortable silence, watching gulls fly in groups over the water or admiring the deep orange streak of the sunset over the Destiny Islands.

* * *

 

Later that evening after Sora had walked her home and she'd told him goodnight, she placed her Thalassa shell on her dresser right beside the clay figure Namine had gifted her. Shiva had somehow found a second wind after her long afternoon at the beach and was scampering around the apartment like a puppy possessed while Kairi admired the sentimental trinkets.

She had enjoyed her beach trip. She felt like the time spent with Sora in a different setting had allowed her to understand him better. He had even opened up to her a little, which was a first. It made her feel like they were on slightly more even footing now, especially after she'd confessed to him that her own dissolved relationship had been the main factor in her moving to the Destiny Islands.

A nagging part of her still was uneasy about the situation with Yuffie, but she felt a little less like an unreasonable killjoy now that she'd been told the whole story and learned that Riku and Namine were also feeling some trepidation.

Sora was only trying to find happiness, and she couldn't fault him for that. For him, that meant testing the waters with the petite, uninhibited karate master.

Kairi took the Thalassa shell from its spot on the dresser and carried it with her as she laid down on her bed. She admired its pastel colors again, running her finger across the ridged surface for what seemed liked the hundredth time that day. Kairi held the shell just below her nose and inhaled deeply, the briny smell of Destiny's shores filling her senses.

The memory of sitting with Namine, Riku, and Sora on the bent paopu fruit tree earlier flashed through her mind. It was something so miniscule, but it had meant so much to Kairi. It almost felt like her new life on the Destiny Islands hadn't started until that very moment with them on the beach.

She didn't let Noctis' unsettling home situation or the memory of Vanitas sweep through her mind at all as she laid atop her soft linens. The warmth of her afternoon spent on the beach blanketed her until she drifted off into a deep sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really enjoyed writing this chapter and I hope it was a better read as a result. Thanks to everyone for their encouragement and feedback for chapter 4. Again, I love hearing from you guys, whether it be through kudos or comments, so let me know any thoughts or concerns you have about this story. Thanks for sticking around til the end and I'll see you for chapter 6! Much love to you all!


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Namine comes up with a solution to a lazy Saturday afternoon. Sora is troubled and Kairi tries to get to the bottom of his odd mood change.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, sorry for the over month-long wait for anyone that was enjoying the weekly updates. The other Sokai AU would not leave me alone until I finished it, so I put this on hold even though I had the vast majority of this chapter written before 'midnight when she dances' was even thought of. You'll find that on my dashboard if interested in what I've been up to during my break with this story. It's a lot heavier than this, which was fun, but I did miss the lighthearted slow burn of this fic. Thanks for your patience and enjoy.

The next week proceeded without much excitement, a steady routine of taking care of Shiva and her students mixed with lunches and afternoons spent with Riku, Sora, and Namine. Kairi stood outside the outer wall of the office attached to her small apartment building, checking her mailbox. She hadn't been at Destiny long, so the only things inside were advertisements for restaurants. Even the credit card companies hadn't found her here yet.

One more good thing the move had given her, she thought amusedly. The lazy Saturday afternoon rolled over her and she almost felt the urge to go inside and take a nap. Lesson plans were due tonight, but she had already finished them and was only waiting until a little later tonight before she sent them off.

Kairi was busy locking her mailbox when the bell that hung inside the office door chimed and Ms. Emmy stepped outside.

"Oh, hey Kairi dear. How are you?"

The schoolteacher smiled at her landlady. "I'm doing great. How is Saturday treating you?"

"It's very slow. The eight of you are so self-sufficient I hardly have anything to tend to here." she laughed good naturedly. "Actually, I'm terribly bored, are you free? I wouldn't mind a cup of tea and a chat."

Honestly, Kairi wouldn't mind either. She hadn't really gotten an opportunity to chat with the older woman. Maybe it would help her out of her Saturday slump.

She followed Emmy inside the office. On a small table near her desk she had a single cup brewer for hot beverages.

"What's your poison, hon? I'm a tea-aholic so I have just about everything."

Kairi grinned at that. "I'm pretty boring; an earl grey kind of girl."

Emmy topped the water reservoir off with a bottle of purified drinking water and sifted through several stacked boxes of different flavored teas. "Not a thing wrong with the classics, Kairi."

"I guess not."

Emmy gestured to the seat in front of her desk. "Have a seat, dear. Get comfy. The tea will only take a minute or so."

Kairi sat and watched as the other woman retrieved two bags and two tea mugs that she kept at her desk.

"How's school?"

Kairi drummed her fingers idly on the arm of the faux leather chair. "Good kids, a little rowdy at times, but smart."

She remembered Noctis with his sad eyes, but Emmy didn't need to know the deep-down details, so she kept it positive.

"That's good." Emmy brushed a strand of her sparsely greying light brown hair that had fallen out of her hair tie behind her ear as she plunged a lever down and hit a button. Hot water began to trickle into the mug below. "I'm glad you've seemed to settle in nicely. Nora tells me you've made quite the impression."

Kairi brows knitted together, not understanding.

Emmy let out a short laugh. "Sorry, dear. Sora's mother, I mean. She told me that Sora and his friends have adopted you into that little circle of theirs."

Understanding flashed across her face. Sora had mentioned her to his mother a little over a week ago. She'd nearly forgotten that Emmy and Sora's mother were close.

Kairi nodded as Emmy handed her the steaming cup. "Luckily for me. They're really great."

The other woman sat in her seat across from Kairi, cradling her own mug, slowly dunking the bag by its leash to help it steep in the hot water.

"They're all wonderful kids." she agreed. "And I must say, Nora is rather impatiently waiting for that dinner Sora promised her. It's always been just the three of them, so she's eager to meet the girl who infiltrated her three musketeers."

Kairi flushed. "I wouldn't say I've  _infiltrated_ …"

Emmy laughed heartily as Kairi swirled the hot water in her cup, the earl grey darkening to its rich, dark brown hue the longer it steeped.

"I'm only teasing you, dear. I meant that in the most loving way possible."

Kairi knew that, but there was still a strange feeling that washed over her at that word. Infiltrated. The thought hadn't even occurred to her that she'd changed their dynamic in some way. The three of them had never given her that impression.

"This tea is delicious." Kairi told her, shifting topics.

Emmy hummed in response. "Isn't it, though? A little on the pricey side but some things are worth splurging on. Tea is one of them."

Kairi wholeheartedly agreed. The then conversation veered to fluffier topics, like the weather and the travails of teaching five-year-olds to write.

* * *

 

Once Kairi was settled back in her apartment, she curled up with the same novel she'd been trying to finish since she moved to the islands over two weeks ago.

She had barely been reading ten minutes when her phone began to vibrate angrily from the arm of her chair. Shiva, who was sprawled across her lap and napping, jerked awake at the noise so close to her ear.

Kairi accepted the call and put it on speaker so she could continue to read.

"Hey, Nam."

Namine's sweet, tinkling voice rang clear through the phone speaker. "Kairi, I have to get out and do something today. I think we need call the guys and set up a movie night."

Kairi marked her page and closed the book, setting it aside. "I'm sure Riku can make it but what about Sora? Did he have any plans with Yuffie?"

"He took her to that movie in town Thursday night. I see no reason why he couldn't spend Saturday with us. But that's up to him if he's happy with her claws sunk deep in his neck."

That was true. Sora hadn't abandoned them or anything, but he'd been out with Yuffie a few times in the last week. She, Riku and Namine had dinner with just a the three of them a couple times as a result. As cagey as Kairi still was about Yuffie, Namine surprisingly seemed to be the most off-put. Sora seemed happy enough with whatever he and the dojo master got up to on their dates, so Kairi remained cautious but quiet. She knew Namine was concerned about Sora primarily, but she also sensed there was a personal edge to her displeasure. Kairi was content to wait for Namine to tell her the story there.

"Oh!" Namine said suddenly. "Would you mind if we had it at your apartment? It just occurred to me I've never been to your place. Sora went with you to buy that television from that pawn shop Wednesday, right?"

Kairi lifted her right hand and began to lightly scratch Shiva's belly from where the pup laid on her side. "He did. I'd love to have everyone over. Can't promise I'd be a good hostess, but…"

"We'd be coming over to spend time with you, silly." Namine reminded her. "You don't have to fuss over us."

Kairi smiled even though they were speaking over the phone and Namine couldn't see it. "Well, then, why don't you pick the movie and I'll message Riku and Sora?"

Namine rumbled in agreement. "Sounds like a plan. Any suggestions for what movie to bring?"

"Surprise us. Pick something you like. It's more fun that way."

Namine giggled. "You might regret saying that. How's 7:00pm?"

"Works for me."

The pair said their goodbyes and Kairi ended the call, promptly messaging Riku and Sora with their invites. Both men messaged back relatively quickly, affirming they would be there.

Kairi set her phone back down on the arm of the chair. Shiva, disturbed from her nap with all the conversation and movement, had hopped from her spot on Kairi's lap and went to get a drink of water.

The schoolteacher knew she was out of practice when it came to these kinds of things. During college she'd spent so much time in her books that she rarely went out. She'd had a handful of close friends who also took their schooling seriously so Kairi had never been a fixture on the party scene or socializing in general. She preferred to spend her time studying when she had quiet moments back then. One afternoon in particular came to mind:

 

_She met him on campus, skulking around and asking everyone odd questions. Kairi was extremely leery of him until he'd spoken to her, asking about a man in a photograph she didn't recognize and a name she didn't know. The ebony-haired stranger had given her his business card, urging Kairi to call him if she ever came across the individual he mentioned._

_By reading his card Kairi had gathered that was some sort of freelance bounty hunter; trained civilians who would aid police in bringing in criminals of varying degrees of crimes. His name was Vanitas and he never told her what the man he was looking for had done, but she assumed it must not have been too serious if campus was still open. He became a familiar face around the grounds that week._

_Now that she knew he wasn't some creep; she'd allowed herself to give him small smiles when she saw him around. He was tall, dark, and handsome, oozing self-confidence. Kairi was smitten, though she felt extremely stupid for it. She had no idea what kind of man he was. He worked an exciting but gritty job, that was all she could say for sure._

_Then, one cool, crisp, fall afternoon, Kairi had decided to take advantage of the beautiful weather and studied outside. She looked up from her books where she sat at the table and saw a man get tackled to the ground just a few feet away from her. Shocked at the sudden display, she shot up out of her seat, heart pounding in her chest but unsure what to do. She recognized the aggressor as Vanitas immediately, watching the two men rolling and grappling against each other in the grass with a mixture of concern and excitement. She was thankful the fugitive didn't seem dangerous and was unarmed._

_The two men wrestled for a minute or so before Vanitas managed to pin the man to the ground, straddling the fugitive's backside and slapping a pair of handcuffs around his wrists. Kairi felt relieved that her acquaintance had emerged victorious._

_Vanitas yanked the glowering man to his feet and a tall, older gentleman with dark skin and long hair pulled back in a ponytail led him away. His partner, Kairi guessed._

_Vanitas' golden gaze darted around the campus, scanning to make sure nothing was out of place. Satisfied that everything was how it should be, she saw his shoulders relax. When his eyes settled on her, he smirked and approached her. Kairi's breath hitched in surprise, suspending itself within her chest. He braced his hands on her table, leaning towards her._

"…  _Are you alright?" she asked him timidly, noticing the stray scrapes and scratches across his face and forearms._

_The smirk deepened. "I'm barely hanging on, honestly. I think I need someone to show me the best place to grab a bite; feeling a little faint. Probably will need them to sit with me too, in case I start feeling woozy."_

_Concern for him gripped her and she bit her lip. Vanitas laughed loudly, noticing her change in body language; Kairi felt dumb upon realizing he hadn't been serious._

" _U-um. Oh. That's…"_

_Vanitas boldly reached across the table and gently shut her open book. "Either I'm terrible at flirting or you're very gullible. I'll spell it out for you either way; you're cute and it's well past my lunchtime. I've seen you every day this week and each time you're nose-deep in homework. I think you're overdue for a break and I hate eating alone."_

_Kairi's face exploded in heat. She'd never been approached by a man like this, especially not one this forward. His golden eyes held her blue ones, almost like a caress. His smirk intrigued her._

_Despite the fact that Vanitas was basically a stranger to her, she found herself curious about him. She'd be lying if she said she wasn't attracted to him, either._

" _T-there's a sandwich shop on campus." she told him finally. She figured that would serve as a good place to have lunch with the dark-haired bounty hunter without having to be completely alone with him._

_Vanitas' white teeth gleamed at her. "Perfect."_

_What harm was there in one lunch?_

 

Kairi swam in the stray memory until she broke the surface of her mind back to the present. She fingered the door of one of her cabinets in her kitchen and opened it, making sure she still had microwave popcorn for tonight, which she did.

She'd met Vanitas while she was pursuing her degree and he had pursued her. It hadn't taken her long to fall for him; he was confident, aloof, and didn't hesitate to go after something when he wanted it. And he'd wanted her.

Kairi couldn't help but parallel that day over six years ago to the Friday three weeks and a day prior.

Kairi had stepped onto the Destiny Islands pursuing a new start when Sora had quite literally run into her. Like Vanitas, he immediately asked her to lunch and pursued a relationship with her. Kairi did a double-take when she'd laid eyes upon Sora—he had the angular nose, strong jaw, and even unruly spikes like her ex. But unlike Vanitas, Sora had only asked for friendship, which led her to the friendship of two others.

Kairi thought it was uncanny. Two very different times in her life linked by new beginnings and relationships with people that seemed to seek her out, like serendipity.

She sat down at her kitchen table in wonder. It was an overwhelming feeling, but not altogether unpleasant. Her friendships with Namine, Riku, and Sora felt  _good_ , natural. It hadn't even been a month since she'd met Riku and Namine, and yet she felt like she'd known them for much longer.

Kairi was grateful. There was no reason she should be this content so soon after uprooting her life, but she was.

Kairi had sent off her lessons to Aerith and had already started drafting for the week after when there was a knock at her door. She closed her computer and went to answer as Shiva followed with a couple excited barks.

Namine stood on her stoop and Kairi quickly moved out of the way to let her in. She had two DVDs in her grasp.

"I narrowed it down to two and I guess I'll just flip a coin to decide between these."

Namine set the movies down on the table where her modest television and DVD player sat that she'd purchased earlier that week. The artist squelched her bare toes into the soft, beige carpet, having shed her shoes at the door.

"I love your place. It's cute." Namine complimented, sinking down into her recliner. "The boys coming?"

Kairi sat at the far edge of the sofa near Namine's seat. "They both said they were."

Shiva sat at Namine's feet, whining with those big brown eyes on display. "Oh, do you want to get up?"

Recognizing the invitation, Shiva stood on her hindquarters and gently pawed at the chair cushion until Namine took her into he arms and set her down in her lap. Content, the dog curled into the space between Namine's thigh and the arm of the chair.

Kairi sighed. "That dog has taken over this apartment in just over the span of a week."

Namine giggled. "She's very loved and very adorable. Animals are great for getting adjusted to new situations."

Kairi reached over, scratching the dog behind her ears. "She's been great. I think Sora knew taking care of her was probably healthier than sitting here alone replaying the last six years."

Namine's smile faltered and her blue eyes became curious. "Six years…?"

Kairi stopped petting Shiva. Namine apparently didn't know the main reason for her moving here; she'd almost forgotten Sora was the only one she told.

"Oh… I figured Sora would have told you."

Namine shook her head. "If you told him something in confidence or something personal, he'll take it to the grave. He's actually still holding onto some of my high school secrets. That's one thing I have to say about being best friends with two men—they're a little less likely to spill your beans."

Kairi couldn't help the little chuckle that spilled from her lips, despite what she was about to say. "Well, I trust you. The short version is I was with someone for six years. When things started to become not so great, we couldn't find common ground to work out the issues and things ended. I thought a change of scenery would speed up the recovery process, so here I am."

Namine covered Kairi's hand with her own, squeezing gently. "I'm sorry. I had no idea. That's a long time to share your life with someone."

Kairi felt the tension that had settled in her shoulders from retelling the story out loud evaporate at her friend's comforting touch. The memory almost felt less strong in a peculiar way. The time they'd all spent on the beach together a couple weeks before came to mind in its wake, and Kairi felt better.

Namine withdrew her hand. "Well, I'm glad you feel comfortable enough to tell me. I'm always here if you want to talk. Riku and Sora too, of course, but if you need a feminine perspective, I'm your girl."

Kairi smiled. "Thanks, Namine."

* * *

 

Riku and Sora arrived nearly half an hour late, so Kairi's and Namine just made idle chit chat as they waited. As expected, Shiva became excited again at more company. Namine and Sora played a coin flipping game to decide on the film, then Sora set about getting everything ready. Riku sat on the far end of the sofa where she had during her conversation with Namine.

Kairi busied herself in her small kitchen, popping the microwave popcorn and putting it in two large bowls.

Sora came in and leaned against the inner wall that enclosed the kitchen, apparently everyone was now waiting on her.

"Thanks for having us over." his pleasant voice wafted over to her. "Sorry we were a bit late though."

Kairi watched the flat popcorn bag rotate slowly through windowed door. "It was just a few minutes; no need for sorrys."

It had been more than a 'few minutes,' but Kairi honestly didn't mind. She appreciated the apology, but she enjoyed her extra time with Namine.

"I was on the boat today, smelled like the ocean. Figured a shower was just common courtesy; Riku agreed to be late with me so I didn't feel as bad."

Kairi drummed her fingers lightly on the countertop as the kernels began to pop inside the bag, making it expand. "Really, it's fine, Sora. We didn't mind waiting."

Was it just her imagination or did he seem… nervous? Surely he couldn't be actually stressing over the fact that he and Riku had shown up for movie night a little late.

The microwave beeped obnoxiously loud and Sora flinched a little at the sound. Kairi honestly was a little concerned. She'd never seen Sora  _jumpy_  before, especially considering it seemed to be over something so miniscule as punctuality.

Kairi transferred the latch batch of popcorn into the second bowl and pressed it into Sora's arms to get his mind off whatever was occupying it. He wordlessly and obediently took the plastic vessel and carried it to the living room for her, his apology put on hold if not dropped altogether.

Namine and Riku sat next to each other on the sofa, the former holding the DVD remote in her hand. Kairi handed the two of them the popcorn she had in her hand and took her seat on the opposite end of the couch.

The living room lights had been turned off and the title screen for the movie illuminated the room in a soft blue glow.

Sora just stood in front of the sofa for a minute, as if grappling with something unseen to the rest of them.

Kairi glanced at the empty seat next to her that she assumed Sora would take. The sofa was big enough to seat them all even if the quarters would be cozy, but Sora had never acted like someone who demanded a wide berth—quite the opposite seemed to be true.

"Sora," she chimed. "are you sure you're okay?"

The brunette finally nodded his head, taking his seat beside her. "Yeah, sorry. Spaced out, I guess."

Riku and Namine exchanged looks with Kairi while Sora stared at the bowl of popcorn in his lap like it was the most interesting thing in the world. Shiva trotted over from her doggie bed across the room and pawed at Sora's knee, which finally prompted him to look at the dog from her spot on the floor. The animal whimpered and Kairi took it upon herself to relieve Sora of the large popcorn bowl, knowing full well what the little Labrador wanted.

Sora pulled Shiva into his lap and the pup happily nestled into his warmth. He seemed to relax after that, stroking Shiva along her back as Namine finally selected play on the main menu and the film began.

* * *

 

The film turned out to be some sort of art period piece. It chronicled the journey of a young 19th century woman who was trying to break into the man's game of sculpture. She moved to the highly artistic district of her city and found herself under the tutelage of the one man who agreed to mentor her.

Of course, he was young and attractive. He also turned out to be engaged to a very jealous lady who didn't approve of his choice of occupation or student. The young woman worked painstakingly to improve her craft in the hopes of one day having her own salon to display her work to the entire city.

Kairi was honestly intrigued by the premise, as predictable and cheesy some of the plot machinations were. The only thing distracting her from the reasonably enjoyable film was right beside her. Sora sat board stiff next to her on the sofa, mouse quiet and mechanically petting Shiva at random intervals.

He looked in the direction of the television, though it was apparent by the far-away look in his eyes that he was only paying sporadic attention to the movie. He had spent the first half hour reaching carefully over to the bowl in her lap, periodically nibbling on the buttery popcorn within.

Kairi wasn't the biggest fan of the stuff, but Sora being on edge was making her just a tad nervous. He was very careful to make sure he wasn't leaning into her and his body language was rigid. She dug around in the bowl in her lap, retrieving a few pieces of popcorn as his hand went in. His fingers brushed her knuckles and she felt him stiffen even more, which she honestly didn't think was possible.

Sora quickly retracted his hand. Perturbed and just a tad offended, Kairi discreetly studied his expression in an attempt to uncover any answers for his odd behavior but found none. He never ventured over for any more popcorn after that, either.

Namine and Riku remained oblivious to the silent war taking place. The blond was watching the television with rapt attention, and Riku sat there, focused, but not engrossed like his other best friend was. Shiva had fallen sleep on Sora's lap, lulled into serenity by the nervous way he constantly threaded her fingers through her coat.

Kairi leaned back in her seat, trying to put it out of her mind and return her focus to the film that had almost become glorified background noise. Slightly irritated and unable to focus on the movie, the edges of her mind got fuzzy in the dark of the living room. It wasn't long before she drifted off.

* * *

 

Consciousness only shifted back to Kairi when she felt a feathery touch against her arm and something shifting near her cheek.

"Kairi?" a smooth, gentle voice called to her. "Kairi, wake up. It's ended."

She blinked sleepily awake at the smooth whisper in the dark room and realized her face was nuzzled into something warm and soft. Her bearings were slowly beginning to come back; she'd seemingly fallen asleep during the last half hour of the movie. The smell of fresh linens and something citrusy tickled her nose and brought her all the way back to reality.

Kairi breathed in the comforting smell, intrigued by its origin. Opening her eyes completely, she just made out the familiar cobalt irises and patient look trained back at her in the dark of the room. She realized the pleasant scent was coming from Sora, whom she was currently slumped against.

Kairi quickly jerked away, glad the dark of the room was probably hiding her blush. Horrifically, she also was pretty sure there was a wet patch of her drool against the soft cotton of his light blue shirt. She glanced at the television, watching the credits roll as the soft score played.

"M'sorry." she murmured to him, her tongue feeling thick and clumsy from sleep.

Kairi was certain she'd heard him say 'It's okay' as Sora gathered the napping Shiva in his arms and got out of his seat, but it was so soft that she couldn't be certain. She watched him cross the room and set the animal in her dog bed, observing that he appeared more relaxed now than he had earlier. Kairi was surprised he'd let her fall sleep against him like that, considering he'd acted like she was covered in spines for most of the movie.

Sora flipped the light switch on the wall while he was up, and light burst behind Kairi's barely adjusted eyes.

Riku groaned, pupils like tiny black specks in a sea of green as he tried to adjust to the light again. "Sora, you could have warned us before you got up and blinded us."

Namine nodded in agreement, rubbing her eyelids. Kairi was blinking rapidly, seeing bright spots across her vision.

"Oh, sorry guys." Sora murmured in apology. "Wasn't thinking I guess."

Riku fished his phone from his pocket to check the time. "Oh wow; it's almost eleven. Not that I didn't enjoy, but I don't want it to be too late walking Namine back home."

Kairi smiled. "This was so much fun. Thanks for the suggestion, Namine."

The other woman beamed. "It's one of my all-time favorites movies. Sora really likes it too, actually, but he looked like he was in outer space the whole time."

Sora didn't say anything in response, just stared at the wall away from everyone.

Namine gathered her things and joined Riku who was waiting at the door for her. The both of them thanked Kairi for hosting.

"Maybe we should make this a weekly thing." Namine suggested.

Riku seemed to brighten at that idea. "Every Saturday, then. Unless someone can't make it and we need to move it around. I want to pick next, though. Sora and Nam always choose sappy flicks."

"Sounds good to me." Kairi agreed. One day a week where her quiet apartment had some life in it besides her and Shiva seemed like a great idea.

Namine turned her attention to Sora, who was still unusually silent. "Hey, Sora, you ready to go?"

Sora nodded and was about to join them at the door when Kairi spoke up.

"Actually, I need to take Shiva out one last time. Would you mind going with me before you take off, Sora? I forgot to do it before the movie started and now it's late."

Destiny Islands was so peaceful and quiet that Kairi honestly didn't mind walking Shiva after dark. She was just making an excuse to get Sora alone and ask what his problem was. She wasn't worrying about this instead of sleeping tonight.

Sora froze mid stride like there had been a gunshot in the room, but eventually relaxed.

"Y-yeah. 'Course."

* * *

 

Apart from the block of tense energy that settled between them, the walk itself was nice. It was a warm spring night on the Destiny Islands and Kairi inhaled the fresh, clean island air, mentally preparing herself for the conversation she planned on having.

"Did I do something to upset you?" she asked, guiding Shiva on her leash down a turn in the sidewalk.

Sora looked up from where he'd been staring at his sneakers. "What? No, of course not. I feel like I've barely seen you this week."

"Then why have you been acting like you can't wait to get away from me all night?"

"That's not—" Sora stilted his own explanation, jamming his hands into his jean's pockets. "I didn't mean to come across that way. I'm sorry if I did. Just been in a weird headspace today. I'm used to Nam and Riku seeing me in one of my moods. Guess I didn't want you to pick up on it so I was trying to lay low, but I knew I couldn't _not_ apologize for being late." he sighed. "Maybe I should have just stayed home. I really wasn't trying to ruin your night."

Shiva had found a particular tree she had some strong affinity with and stopped to relieve herself. Sora and Kairi paused their walk to let her take care of business.

"Sora, you don't have to put on airs around me." she told him with a tinge of exasperation. "I'm glad you came and you didn't ruin my night. I moved here because I'd been in a two month-long mood. I just want to know what made you act so unlike yourself tonight." 

The brunette's adam's apple bobbed as he swallowed hard, but he offered no explanation.

"Does it have anything to do with Yuffie?" as far as Kairi could see, things at work and with Namine and Riku were fine. What else could have him so jaded?

Kairi received more silence in reply. His lips parted and twitched like he wanted to say something, but didn't.

"Sora, how are we supposed to go anywhere with this friendship if you won't talk to me? I'm just going to assume I'm the problem until you're honest with me."

Yes, she was manipulating him. That was usually a big no-no for her; a dirty trick she despised. But guilt was incredibly effective on Sora, and she wanted to clear the air.

Sora sucked in a breath. "Maybe it has a little to do with Yuffie. I dunno. Things are… not bad with her. It's just… We hang out, have fun… She's such a free spirit, doesn't care about what anyone thinks. I kind of admire that about her. She's gorgeous, confident, smart, but it's like…"

"—No lightning bolt?" Kairi inferred as Shiva finished her business with the tree and trotted back over to them.

Sora laughed in spite of himself. "Kinda? Honestly, we haven't been seeing each other long enough to make any set-in-stone plans, but the real problem is I'm not sure if anything has changed since the last time. I thought her reconnecting with me was a sign that she was ready for something serious instead of the casual affairs she's so famous for, but now I'm not so convinced."

Kairi was glad he was being honest about what was bothering him, but she still wasn't sure how much she liked hearing about the details of his relationship with Yuffie. She buried the feeling deep down so she could be a proper friend.

"You've been taking it day by day like you promised. There's nothing else you can do. Why not try talking to her?"

Sora toed his sneaker into the sidewalk. "Yeah, that sounds good on paper. It's just such an awkward conversation to have. I feel like if she is treating this as a proper relationship, she'll be offended by the question, but if it's the same as before, she'll bolt anyway to get away from any potential complication."

Kairi watched him. She could see he was really bothered by the whole thing. No wonder he had acted so dodgy during the movie. "Or maybe you asking will plant the seed in her to try something serious for a change. Whatever happens has to be better than not knowing where you stand, right?"

Sora nodded, offering a small smile. "Yeah, that's true. I'll think about it."

"See? Was that so hard? I'm a good listener."

Sora bent down to pet Shiva, who had been staring up at him expectantly since she'd gotten back from her tree. "You are. Thanks, Kairi. I'm sorry about earlier. I had lunch with her today and I've just felt kind of off since. I knew you'd pick up on it, so I was trying extra hard not to be weird. Didn't realize it came off as avoidance."

She wound the leash around her hand absentmindedly. "It's okay. I just don't want you to feel like you can't talk to me, Sora."

And Kairi meant it; she just hoped that next time it didn't involve Yuffie problems.

* * *

 

"You know, Rox is overdue for a vacation and so am I."

Kairi laid perpendicular across her bed, phone cradled loosely against her ear. "That sounds fun. What are you guys planning on doing?"

"Actually, I think I want to come see you. Maybe see if Gran wants to come too. What do you think?"

Kairi sat up. Talking on the phone with her family back home was nice, but it wasn't the same as being able to talk to them face-to-face.

"Really, Xion? I'd love that!"

"Yeah, figured I should take advantage of the fact that my sister lives on one of the biggest tourists traps around."

Kairi rolled her eyes. "That's only part of the island, and you definitely all have to stay here with me."

Xion laughed over the line. "Can you fit us all? How big is that little apartment? I thought for sure you'd moved that boyfriend of yours in."

Kairi knew her sister meant it as a joke, but her breath punched out just a little anyway. "Har, har, har. You ever going to let up teasing me about him? You know we're just friends. He's actually seeing someone."

"I know, I know." Xion assured her, still chuckling. "It's just such an easy way to get you flustered, but you knew exactly who I was talking about though, didn't you?"

Kairi groaned. "You're so mean. I need to stop telling you anything."

"No, no. I should probably stop teasing you about it. I'm happy for you, you know that? The little group you have, they seem nice. I'll talk to Roxas about coming to see you in the next couple weeks and maybe I'll finally get the meet them myself."

Kairi's irritation fluttered away and she smiled a little to herself. "That'd be great. Hope you can make it."

Xion clicked her tongue thoughtfully. "Rox shouldn't be too hard to convince. He's misses you, too. I just hope Gran feels up to the trip."

"Yeah," the schoolteacher agreed. Gran had so seldom done anything for herself even resembling a vacation and wasn't a big fan of traveling. "You know how she is, though. But maybe she'll surprise us."

"Gran on that island of yours sipping some fruity drink with one of those little umbrellas? Can you imagine?"

Kairi scoffed good naturedly. "That would be something, wouldn't it?"

Xion gave an affirmative hum over the line. "Yeah, and she could meet your new man."

The red-head flopped back against her mattress with a resounding wail of agony, and all she heard was Xion's guttural guffaws over the line.

* * *

 

An hour later Kairi was off the phone and free from her sister's incessant teasing, once again curled up on her bed as once again tried to finish reading the same novel from that afternoon. Shiva was sleeping in a ball against her side while Kairi petted the soft beige fur on her neck.

The pup's soft breaths were the only things audible in the quiet room. Kairi glanced over to her dresser where the Thalassa shell that Sora had given her sat surely but was currently out of sight. 

She thought about Sora—his theories about lightning bolts. Kairi didn't pursue the sensation like he did, though she couldn't deny that there was some merit to the mysterious force that drew some souls together, which was the crux of what he was saying. She and Namine had entered into their friendship like Kairi had been preparing for it her entire life; Riku was calm, rational and it was impossible not to feel emboldened in his presence. 

Sora was just wonderful: gracious and sociable. Kairi couldn't say they'd immediately hit it off—the fact that just looking at him conjured up visions of Vanitas was more the culprit behind their stilted common ground when they first met than anything else. But once Kairi had moved past that part as best she could and dug everything Selphie had said out from under her skin, the draw between them had been free to flourish just like it had with Riku and Namine.

Even her memory of meeting Vanitas earlier reminded her that she'd felt quickly drawn in by him, like some sort of magnetism had pulled them together. She wouldn't call it a 'lightning bolt' effect, but there had been something simmering under the surface during that first lunch with Vanitas that propelled them into six years together. 

" _I'm happy for you, you know that? The little group you have, they seem nice."_

Kairi replayed what Xion said in her head. 'Nice' didn't really do the three of them justice. She was coming up on a month at the Destiny Islands soon. It didn't seem like it had been that long, and while Xion's constant ribbing on her relationship with Sora drove her crazy, she couldn't deny that her sister had every reason to feel happy for her. In the span of a month she had met three wonderful people. She was happy.

Even with the hitch with Sora tonight, it had turned out to be a good Saturday. She knew he was just trying to make a worthwhile connection with someone and she was supposed to be his friend. She couldn't be upset with him for using her as a soundboard for his girl troubles, but there was a small, selfish part of Kairi that resented Yuffie for casting a pall over their evening, too.

Sora never invited Yuffie to be part of anything they did together, he rarely spoke about her, yet she managed to sabotage a perfectly good movie night without even being there because her wishy-washiness with a great guy had managed to bleed into his outings with friends. Kairi gripped her novel a little tighter, having stopped reading it altogether when her musings became too intense for her to follow the plot. Kairi had only been in one serious relationship her entire life so maybe she was no expert, but she never understood why people played chicken with their intentions.

Either you like someone or you don't—either you wanted a grown-up relationship, or you just wanted the thrill of swapping spit with someone near the busy sidewalk where you taught martial arts to children. It sounded like Yuffie was toying with Sora, which Kairi didn't appreciate even seeing happening with a vague acquaintance, much less someone she  _knew_ , someone she  _cared_  about, someone she wanted—

—To see happy. She was certain of that, at least. She didn't approve of Yuffie, who she didn't know her all that well, admittedly, so maybe she didn't have a right to judge, but anyone that could throw Sora into that much turmoil during their second try with him clearly wasn't worth the stress in her mind. He seemed willing to still try, so Kairi supposed it couldn't be helped. He was a big boy like he'd reminded Riku that day on the beach; she couldn't stop him if he was still willing to persist with Yuffie.

Sighing to herself, Kairi closed her book and set it on her nightstand, giving up on reading yet again. Shutting off her lamp, she stretched and yawned as she settled into her warm blankets on her side. Shiva immediately nestled into the curve behind her bent knees, a comforting warm lump in the quiet of her dark room. She shut off her thoughts for another day, falling asleep within ten minutes of laying down.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know any comments or concerns you might have. Just a little foundation being set in this one.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sora takes Kairi to the Secret Place, but something has the schoolteacher's emotions running high.

Kairi was currently squeezed into one of the students' empty desks with her hands folded neatly on the wooden surface, watching each one of the kindergarteners go up for a show-and-tell presentation. It was cliché, of course, but the children had been working so hard on the concepts that were advanced for their age and were even getting ahead, so Kairi thought they deserved a class activity that would be more fun than counting and writing.

Truthfully, Kairi enjoyed watching them talk about the things they brought in. She often learned more about her students from one day of show-and-tell than she would the entire year depending on the kind of students she had. Here on the islands it was much easier considering how close together everyone was; she often ran into the parents of her students while out and about with Sora, Riku, and Namine. Conversely, back in Radiant Garden she rarely saw the parents of her students outside of school. It was easy to get lost in the mobs of people and businesses there. It was a true concrete jungle.

Noah, who would be the troublemaker of the class if she made a habit of labeling students like that, finished talking about his prized slingshot and a rather lengthy tale about how he shattered his neighbor's window playing with it last month. He sat back down and Yuna stood up eagerly to show her trinket.

She decided to let the students go in whatever order they pleased unless they became uncooperative then she told them she would pick the order. The children had surprisingly rose to the occasion and were consistently getting up to share.

"This is a pendant my daddy got me for my birthday last year." Yuna unclasped the necklace from around her neck to show everyone. Kairi noticed it was the same necklace she'd worn every day she'd seen her.

"He was out of town on a business trip and missed my birthday." the little girl continued. "When he got home, he gave me this. It wasn't the same as having him there at my party, but he did take me out for ice cream like every day cause he felt bad and I got a really pretty necklace. Sometimes he has to leave for a while, and I miss him when he's gone but wearing this helps me remember that he'll be back to tuck me in and read to me. That's why I love it so much."

Yuna grinned brightly, reaching behind to brush her shoulder-length brown hair away from her neck to put her pendant back on before bouncing back to her seat. The class of children clapped idly because they knew that was what they were supposed to do, but Kairi sat at her desk and felt the tell tale pricks of emotion behind her eyes as they threatened to mist.

"Thank you, Yuna." Kairi croaked.

Tidus went up next to show his prized blitzball that had been autographed by a famous player that Kairi knew nothing about. She had watched many a blitzball match at home with Vanitas—he was a big fan of the sport—but nothing had really stuck with her.

Then Noctis, who had been scowling since Yuna had shared her story about the pendant and her father, stood and went to the front of the class, standing in front of her desk. He'd brought the blue tackle box that Kairi had seen him carrying that day on the beach with Sora.

"This is the Somnus Bait and Tackle Deluxe," he explained listlessly. "it has over 36 compartments for lures, lines, and weights."

Kairi listened intently, even though like with blitzball, his technical jargon about fishing and its trappings went straight over her head. It was incredible how mature the young child sounded explaining about the specs. Truthfully, tackle boxes had always reminded her of the kaboodle cases she had as a little girl that held beads and other bits of craft jewelry, but she doubted Noctis would appreciate the sentiment.

He offered no excited story about how he had gotten his item like the other children had; he just rattled on about how he used it for fishing and storage. Once he covered all his bases, he sat back down quietly. Kairi glanced at the wall clock; it was ten minutes until their lunch period started.

"Okay guys, we'll finish the rest of the presentations after lunch and your special class."

Kairi then herded the kids into a neat, single file line. She opened the door to lead them into the hallway, revealing a familiar face waiting with two white paper bags, one in each hand.

Sora grinned toothily at her. "Hiya. Namine said she had some things she had to in the art room for the next class. I tried to talk her out of it and even offered to help, but she said I'd just get in the way and insisted you and I eat without her. So I left her with her lunch and I guess it's just you and me."

Kairi blinked at him, keeping an eye on her students as they filtered out into the corridor. "Oh, that's fine, I guess. I hate that she's working through her lunch, though."

Sora scratched the back of his neck. "Yeah, I woulda helped her, but she can be so stubborn sometimes."

"Oh, hey, Mr. Big Foot. Haven't seen you at lunch lately. Where have you been?"

Sora and Noctis had developed a charming, albeit slightly antagonistic, friendship. Kairi thought it was kind of adorable. She had scolded Noctis for the nickname at first, but Sora insisted it was actually kind of growing on him, so she grudgingly let it lie.

It was true—Sora had been absent from lunch for most of last week. She supposed he was spending time with Yuffie, but apart from last Saturday when he actually  _told_  Kairi that the karate master had been his lunch date and confessed about his second thoughts about their relationship, she didn't know for sure that's what he had been doing.

Riku still came on the days he was able, but for the most part it had been just her and Namine.

Sora exhaled, answering the boy as the entire line began to move at Kairi's lead. "Oh, you know. Busy with the business and stuff. Sorry, bud. Glad to see you again though. How ya been?"

Noctis turned his attention to his feet as he began to walk. "Fine."

Sora pursed his lips at how dejected and halfhearted the reply had been, shooting Kairi a conflicted look. She mirrored it, but since Noctis was standing right there, she wasn't able to vocalize any of her concerns right then.

* * *

 

"I've never seen such a little guy look so sad." Sora told her, taking a healthy bite from his melt from Wakka's Place.

"He's always been quiet, but not in the shy way most kindergarteners usually are." Kairi whispered. "It's more akin to the way adults get quiet when they have something on their mind. I'm not sure what to do. Part of me wants to talk to his father about it, but another part of me doesn't see a conversation where I tell a parent their kid is acting depressed going well."

Sora nudged her with his shoulder. "Hey, you'll figure it out. You're a great teacher, and I'm here if you need me."

Kairi smiled at his encouragement, but her cheeks felt suddenly warm as they always did when he praised her.

"And speaking of another great lady…" he continued. "My mom says this Sunday will work for her for that dinner we talked about a couple weeks ago at the beach. Can you make it?"

Kairi took a drink from her can of tangerine flavored sparkling water. "Yeah, I can make it. I'm looking forward to it."

"I'll come by to get you, then, about six-thirty-ish. Dinner's at seven."

Kairi nodded, affirming their plans.

She  _was_  looking forward to it, though there was an edge of anxiety there, too. Ms. Emmy and Sora both spoke very highly of her, of course, but she was still a bit nervous about meeting someone so important to Sora.

Nora Strife. Would she be as complex and approachable as her son?

"And another thing," Sora swallowed a bite of french fry he'd been chewing while she had been musing about his mother. "Friday is supposed to be breezy and overcast. It would be a good day to show you the Secret Place if you want… Unless you already had plans."

Kairi chuckled a little. "No plans. The only people I make plans with are you guys. Friday sounds perfect."

Another one of Sora's beaming smiles was her reply. "You'll love it. It's a side of Destiny few people even among the locals ever see. Don't forget your swimsuit."

* * *

 

Once the students had been dismissed and picked up by their parents, Kairi wandered down to the art room to check on Namine.

She tapped on the open door to make her presence known. "Ms. Fleuret, are you alright?"

Namine peeped her head out from the side room and Namine closed the distance between them to lean against the doorway. The art teacher was currently hanging up paintings to dry.

"Did you get everything done? Do you still need help?"

Namine strung the last wet painting up on a wooden clip fastened to a line in the smaller room. Kairi heard the soft hum of the kiln in the corner as it baked clay. "Just finished everything. How was lunch?"

"Would have been better if you had been there. Me and Sora would have helped you, you know."

Satisfied with everything in the small room, Namine nodded resolutely to herself. "I know you would have, but I wanted you to enjoy your lunch. And you know you can't leave those munchkins alone during lunch."

Kairi sighed, but knew she would get nowhere with the blonde once she'd made her mind up. And she  _did_  have a point about the children. "Well, Sora told me his mother wants to do dinner this Sunday. You and Riku are coming, right?"

Namine turned off the kiln, the concoctions apparently done, and herded Kairi out of the small room with the artist close behind. She secured the door behind them.

"Of course. Wouldn't miss it for anything."

Namine began to tidy up the art room from her last class; Kairi followed her lead to help.

"Anything in particular I need to know about Ms. Strife beforehand?" Kairi asked, mirroring Namine and dropping loose crayons that littered the tables into large plastic baskets.

The blonde hummed in thought. "Hmm. Well, she's divorced. Her husband left her and Sora when he was about six. She's not a fan of Yuffie at all. I remember the one time he tried inviting her to dinner when they first started seeing each other months ago, she'd slipped him her tongue while Nora had her back turned getting the dessert ready, but made sure the kiss lasted long enough for his mother to see the end of it. I mean, Yuffie had obviously done it to antagonize Nora because they'd been passively aggressively going back and forth all night, but still. So maybe don't mention that Sora is seeing her again."

Kairi paused her cleanup efforts for a moment. She didn't care much for Yuffie, but a large part of that was because she didn't know her very well and what she did know was that she seemed to be playing around with Sora. The suspicion gave Kairi a strange feeling when she thought about it too long, but Namine and Nora weren't fond of her either. Was Yuffie really that difficult of a girl to like, and if so, what exactly did  _Sora_  see in her?

"What is Yuffie like as a person? Seems like no one I know but Sora has a high opinion of her."

Namine dropped the last few crayons into their basket. "As a person, she's fine. I'm a little bit biased against her because my chemistry partner junior year of high school had a big crush on her. His name was Leon and I wasn't close to him like I am Riku and Sora, but he was still a friend. Yuffie asked him out and I remember him being ecstatic, but she was much the same in high school as she is now. She kind of  _toyed_  with him until she got bored and moved on. It devastated Leon, and when Sora started seeing her years later, I was downright furious. Luckily, Sora kept his expectations in check. As for Nora's problem with her, she's was just being protective of Sora, I guess. Yuffie has a reputation for being fun and fancy-free."

"Sora does, too." Kairi whispered before she could stop herself. There was a split second of worry that Namine would take it as a jab against their mutual friend, but luckily the blonde didn't seem offended.

Namine laughed. "Yeah, he does, but his close friends and family know that isn't exactly the truth. He's never been deceptive or led anyone on and he takes things slow until he really likes someone. Yuffie specializes in… uh, a lot of passion early on. Guys get attached sometimes. As to why Sora jives with her so well, I'm not sure. He likes to see the best in people. Maybe he thinks he can sway her, or maybe a part of him likes how strong she comes on? That's not really his way, though."

Kairi's stomach sunk a little when Namine implied that Sora possibly enjoyed Yuffie's penchant for quickly jumping into physical relationships. It seemed to contrast everything she knew about him and that he himself believed, but that day in the alley he had seemed plenty content with her forwardness.

"You don't like her either." Namine ventured.

Kairi felt her cheeks heat up at the realization that her dislike was so thinly veiled. "I don't even know her…"

Namine sighed. "Like I said, I have an old grudge I probably should let go of. If you have a strictly platonic relationship with her, she's great. She's never been rude or anything to me, and it's her business if she'd rather fool around with the guys she sees than have a meaningful relationship with them. But not everyone she takes up with is on the same page—that's really my issue with her."

Kairi fumbled with her words for a moment in the wake of Namine's clarification. "I-I'm just… worried about Sora, I guess."

"You really care about him, don't you?"

It was a simple, harmless statement, but it still made Kairi's pulse quicken.

"O-of course." Kairi sputtered a little too quickly, a little too flustered. "I care about you and Riku, too. All of you."

Namine gave her a measured look, like she knew something the Radiant Garden native didn't, but eventually her lips spread into a tender smile. "Well, we all care about you too, Kairi. And don't worry about Sora. He knows how Yuffie is, and Yuffie is enough of a non-confrontationist to refrain from hurting a guy who will have three people leaping to his defense. He'll be fine."

There was a dried glob of yellow paint on the table Kairi sat on. She used her thumbnail to scrape it off. "Yeah, I guess you're right."

"If you still feel strongly about it Friday, use the time with Sora to have a heart-to-heart."

Kairi blinked at her, surprised. "How did you know we were meeting up Friday?"

"He mentioned it when he dropped off my lunch earlier." Namine explained. "Wanted to make sure we didn't have plans together already."

Kairi just absorbed the information, not saying anything.

Namine crossed the room and went behind her desk, grabbing her bag. "Well, I'm all finished here. How does a sea-salt pop sound?"

Despite everything swirling around in her mind, Kairi couldn't help but smile. "Really great, actually."

Soon after, the two of them left school and headed for their favorite ice cream place.

* * *

 

Kairi was walking down the concrete steps of the schoolhouse the ensuing Friday when she heard her phone vibrate loudly from within her bag. She quickly retrieved it and swiped her finger across her screen to accept the call.

"Hey, Kairi." Sora's unmistakably smooth voice greeted from the other end. "Just calling to make sure you didn't forget about today."

"Of course not. Where do I need to meet you?"

Sora hummed thoughtfully through the speaker. "Why don't I come get you at your apartment? We're going a little late in the day so we'll get a little more time together on the walk there."

There came that peculiar, airy feeling in her chest. "S-sounds good."

"How's five o'clock?"

Kairi nodded her head, then rolled her eyes at herself as she realized they were on the phone and he couldn't see that. She took the phone away from her ear and glanced at the time. It was quarter after three. "Five is perfect. I'll see you then."

"Bye, Kai." she could almost hear the smile in his voice.

* * *

 

Kairi had gotten home and was dressing for her beach outing with Sora. She slipped a pair of shorts and a t-shirt on over her swimsuit because walking through town half-dressed had felt odd to her. Plus, she was a kindergarten teacher in a small town; seemed fitting.

With nothing left to do, she took Shiva for a walk then sat in her recliner and waited for five to come around. A jittery feeling settled in her belly as the minutes stretched on. It couldn't be called anything other than nervous excitement. It felt different than it had last time Kairi had went to the beach. For one, they had gone as a group. Today it would just be Sora and herself, and the knowledge that they would be completely alone at the isolated spot he was taking her to wasn't lost on her. She didn't feel uncomfortable, quite the opposite.

Their dynamic had changed since then. He was more forthcoming with her—as she was with him—and his transparency about his relationship with Yuffie had also transformed the air between them into something Kairi wasn't ready to deal with.

Before, Xion's teases about her and Sora had been eye-roll worthy. Now, Kairi found herself thinking about her sister's jabs long after their conversations had ended. The schoolteacher could recall a conversation at lunch earlier with him. She told some unintentional joke she couldn't even remember, and he gifted her one of those radiant smiles of his like it was no big deal. Her very nerves felt like live wires, crackling and hissing just beneath her skin.

" _You really care about him, don't you?"_

Namine's statement earlier had set off a chain of events in her mind. During ice cream talk with her later it had been easy to put it out of her mind for a while, but now that Kairi was at home alone with her thoughts, she couldn't get the implication out of her head. Whether Namine had intended it to come off that way, a fork in the road had formed for Kairi.

And as much as she hated admitting it even in the privacy of her own mind, she felt  _relief_  that things between Sora and Yuffie apparently weren't what he had expected. She knew it was wrong, but she couldn't pretend it was mere concern for Sora anymore. She hadn't been lying about that part to Namine, but her reasons weren't as unselfish as she wanted them to be. Not to mention that even through all the foreign feelings blooming for Sora, she was still tucking Vanitas away in a secret part of herself.

Kairi was doing better in many ways. Her job and new friends had truly made all the difference, but she hadn't completely let go of Vanitas, and here she was reaching for Sora for reasons she couldn't even pinpoint. Sora, who was wonderful and warm and just wanted to be her friend.

Kairi was a mess all over again, and she was finally being honest with herself about it. She couldn't exactly identify these rogue feelings for Sora with any degree of certainty. The hard truth was she still missed Vanitas despite time and distance and everything he put her through. She cared for Sora, unquestionably, but this magnetism… Was it because of Sora himself, or was it her heart's way of trying to heal itself from Vanitas by projecting those dormant feeling onto someone else? Or worse yet, was it jealousy akin to what Selphie had displayed at the diner when she told Kairi all those false things for the express purpose of driving a wedge between her and Sora?

She couldn't say for sure, and admitting that destroyed everything she'd been trying to convince herself of for months now. She wasn't over Vanitas, and her feelings for Sora were too complex and jumbled to be simple friendship.

Kairi's doorbell rang suddenly and she swallowed hard, getting up from her seat to answer. It was nearly five o'clock on the dot. Shiva got up from her dog bed in the corner and was hot on her heels.

She opened the door and there he was, smiling as usual.

"Hiya. Ready to go?"

"Hey. Yeah, just let me grab my bag."

Sora's grin only broadened when she stepped aside and gestured for him to come in. He stood at the doorway, stooping to pet his biggest fan as she went to retrieve her bag. When Kairi turned back to face him, Shiva had rolled onto her back and was getting the belly rub of her life.

"I figured it was best to leave her at home for this one, so I thought I could at least let her get a few moments of Sora time."

The brunette laughed. "Well, thanks. I wanted a few minutes of Shiva time, too." he continued to affectionately scratch Shiva. "Cause you're such a good girl. Isn't that right? Yes it is, yes—"

Kairi exhaled heavily, finally smiling a little herself. She couldn't help the mood lift that came from watching Sora dote on the puppy. It gave her the resolve to press on no matter what was nagging in the back of her mind.

* * *

 

 

The evening sun on the beach was warm, but not blaringly hot like it would have been at noon. Not familiar with the part of the shore Sora was leading her through, Kairi was content to just follow his lead as they trekked through the hot sand. She'd taken off her sandals several minutes ago because they were more of a hindrance than anything and was now traipsing barefoot. She was positive all the walking was giving her the free pedicure of a lifetime.

"We're almost there," Sora assured her.

There were no tourists or locals around in the heavily vegetated, overgrown part of the island he led her through. There was just the two of them and the sound of their feet against the sand, cicadas singing softly in the thick greenery.

They continued like that for a few more minutes, walking side by side until Sora stopped at a little cove.

"Here it is."

Kairi stopped alongside him, eyes roving over the quiet, lush area that gave way to the craggy cave, almost concealing it.

"Wow, this must have been a kid's dream come true."

Sora chuckled. "Yeah, we had so much fun playing around here. We're lucky Destiny is small; I have a feeling if we lived somewhere bigger, our parents wouldn't have liked us coming out to such an isolated part of the island."

He grabbed her hand and led her through the dense overgrowth. It was a simple gesture, but the place her mind had been in earlier made the innocent touch all she could focus on as heat spread throughout her body, starting from her palm out.

"Should've brought a machete." Sora joked. "I almost walked right past it because of the vegetation."

He led them to the mouth of the little cove and pushed back the vines and weeds, letting go of her hand so she could step inside.

Once Kairi stepped through the entrance, she gasped a little. The cove turned into a grotto; a fair-sized natural pool of crystal-clear water sat in the middle. A small opening in the ceiling of the cave, allowed the most illuminating ribbon of light to beam down from outside.

Kairi sat her sandals and bag down near the pool, dipping her toe in. She shivered slightly at the chill of pool, gooseflesh erupting over her skin. The disturbed water began to dance, the light catching the moving water and projecting a shimmering reflection of light across the craggy rocks.

"It's beautiful." she whispered.

Sora gave an affirmative sigh of agreement from behind her, sitting down on the pool's edge, sinking his legs from the knee down beneath the water. He was wearing a simple t-shirt and those same red and yellow paopu fruit patterned swim trunks, splashing his legs around in the cool, clean water. He looked so relaxed, so child-like. She sat down beside him, absorbing his aura greedily, grateful for it chasing her own lingering anxiety away.

Kairi smelled no brine in the air here—she surmised this was a small pool of freshwater.

"I used to come here a lot in high school." Sora reminisced. "We all did. It's been a few months since I was here last, though. Not that I didn't want to spent time with you, but having an excuse to come out here again was nice."

She looked over to him, his expression open and cheerful, and she felt the low-burn of guilt smolder within her—about Vanitas, about Yuffie, about the fluttery feeling she got whenever his piercing blue stare was fixed on her.

Sora broke her self-pity before it could get started again by hoisting his hands in the air and pulling his shirt over his head, tossing across the grotto. His muscles flexed in the natural light of the cave as he pushed off from his seat and slipped into the water with a small splash.

He half-laughed, half-yowled as the icy liquid came to just under his ribcage. Biting the bullet, he dunked himself completely under the water. He disappeared for a few seconds, and when he finally emerged with a sputter, his dark, chestnut hair sat flat and heavy on the top of his head. Kairi couldn't help the giggle that bubbled up from within her.

Sora splashed her, looking mischievous. "You laughing cause I look like a drowned rat?"

Kairi squealed at the cool spray. "W-what? No! That was  _cold_ , Sora! I'm going to get you back for that..."

The brunette clicked his tongue. "You'll have to get in the water to do that, won't you?"

Thoroughly goaded, the red-head got up from her seat and quickly peeled off the street clothes that she'd worn over her swimsuit. She followed Sora into the pool, not wanting to hesitate and look like the least adventurous out of the two of them.

It was cool, not unbearably so, but it felt much colder to her heated skin than it actually was. Kairi hissed a little, wrapping her arms around herself, willing her body to adjust to the temperature change.

Sora quickly crossed the pool to where she stood. "Are you okay? I was just teasing. You didn't really need to jump in if you weren't ready. I don't want you to get sick."

Kairi was going to protest that she was fine and point out that  _he_  had almost immediately submerged his entire body under the cold surface, but before she could, he slipped his strong arms around her in an embrace.

She wasn't sure if his body heat or her sudden flush was responsible for the temperature change.

Sora's skin was surprisingly warm against hers, despite the small freshwater pool sheltered from the elements that they were in being chilly. Kairi knew it wasn't an actual embrace; he was trying to regulate her internal temperature, but it still did a fabulous job of disorienting her. She idly realized this was the first time he'd touched her like this.

He held her close to him for a few more seconds, then pulled away, but didn't move  too far.

"Better?" he asked, looking at her with those worried cobalt irises.

Honestly, she felt hot now, heart thrumming beneath her chest. If she hadn't been conflicted about them before, she definitely was now.

Her lips parted, trying to remember how to answer the question posed to her, but all she could think about was the proximity of his lean, wet, half dressed body to hers. She licked her lips, feeling her words finally starting to come back to her. Just before her faculties completely returned, he leaned in just a hair closer, head tilting in a gesture she hadn't participated in for months.

Nothing was said; nothing needed to be said. Kairi had no great history or experience with men, but she knew what that familiar electricity crackling between two people meant. She'd had six straight years of it. There was no other sound except his breathing, nothing else in the grotto to her senses at all except for him and her.

Sora's nose was almost close enough to brush hers, lips imminent, but suddenly his damp, chocolate spikes flashed ebony and his blue eyes took on a honeyed hue just before they closed.

Kairi, as if on autopilot, gripped his muscled biceps with lightning quick reflexes. She didn't push him away, but she also didn't let him move a centimeter closer, either. Sora immediately intuited that as  _back up_. He jerked back about two whole feet, casting his gaze to the far side of the grotto. He clearly tried to pretend that what just nearly happened, hadn't just nearly happened.

He was  _dating_  Yuffie. Kairi suspected she herself was still carrying a dimly-burning candle for  _Vanitas_. How had it almost come to that? Kairi tried to breathe evenly despite the overbearing emotions squeezing her insides like a boa constrictor. She wanted to blame it all on her muddled mind from earlier and Sora's own relationship problems, but whatever her reasons, she couldn't deny that she felt  _disappointment_. She'd  _wanted_  to kiss him.

Sora, shaking his head as if coming back to himself, finally spoke. "Hey, come look over here; I've always been fascinated by this weird rock over this way. You're scholarly, maybe you know what kind it is."

Kairi blinked at him, confused, but then said a silent thank you in afterthought. She wasn't sure if it would have been less taxing to ignore the "kiss" entirely or acknowledge it, but the nonconfrontationalist in her was happy he had made the decision for them. Sora seemed rather calm in the aftermath of what had transpired between them—much less frazzled than she was. Surely she hadn't  _imagined_  the pull between them.  _He_  had made the first move, hadn't he? Or had  _she_  been the one to close in before holding him back at arm's length? Was it possible for a connection to feel that palpable if it was one-sided?

She waded over to him anyway, looking at the clump of rock he was gesturing to.

"Um, a gray rock? It looks normal to me. Same as all the other ones in here."

Sora scratched the back of his head, ruffing his dark, damp spikes. "You think? Well, mystery solved, I guess. I'm clueless."

The humor in his voice was apparent, but there was a tinge of nervousness, too. Nervousness she had caused.

"You're not clueless." Kairi murmured, soft voice reverberating through the open, empty air of the grotto.

_You're just evasive. And spoken for. And I'm too conflicted to know if this is genuine or not. It can't happen. I can't destroy this friendship._

It meant too much to her.

She made a decision to put the almost-kiss out of her mind, despite the persistent, selfish part of her that didn't want to forget and wanted quite the opposite. A deep pocket of herself wanted the moment to return, for the kiss to be realized. Selfish Kairi felt certain if she had allowed herself that indulgence, whether it was right or wrong, whether or not Sora even  _wanted_  to kiss her, she would at least be able to say for certain if there was anything between them or if it was just her broken heart reaching for any port in a storm.

But she knew that was wrong. Yuffie aside, Sora made her too conflicted to even think about pursuing anything with him. She wasn't sure she even deserved the chance. He was warm, generous, and would certainly be happier without the complication she undoubtedly would bring if she allowed him to find out about the storm of emotions brewing inside her. Maybe he had an unusual approach to dating, but at least he knew what he wanted. That was more than she could say for herself.

Silence stretched between them. Sora's expression changed into something else. Kairi couldn't intuit the meaning behind it and she felt as locked out of his heart as she had the first week she met him. He suddenly pitched backward, easily gliding onto his back, floating around the pool facing the ceiling.

"C'mon, Kai. Enjoy the water a bit. It feels kind of warm now, doesn't it?"

Not wanting to seem any more distracted from their outing than she already was, she followed suit, staring at the craggy rock overhead. Kairi squeezed her eyes shut, the comfortable lull of the water putting all else out of her mind.

"Yeah, this feels nice."

As much as his calm demeanor cast a lot of doubt into what she thought had happened, she was glad one of them had their head on straight.

She heard him sigh. "I'm glad you came, Kairi."

Despite the change the last several minutes had wrought, she wouldn't have done anything different. She liked being around Sora, even though lately being with him began to raise more questions within herself.

But Kairi realized then that the tradeoff was worth it. Their friendship was worth it. Yes, there was pain, but so what? Would it have been better for her to be in denial?

She didn't think so. She was grateful for confusion and the kiss that never was, for everything she felt that she didn't understand. Honesty with herself meant that she could take responsibility, and maybe that would be the foothold she needed to sort everything out. About herself, about closure with Vanitas, and maybe that would shed some clarity on her relationship with Sora. Riding this out would be her key to getting back to normal; not lying to herself, not pretending nothing had happened.

"I'm glad I came, too." Kairi confessed aloud, opening her eyes, turning her neck to look at Sora. He was looking at her also.

There, in the peace of the grotto with Sora's blue eyes watching her curiously, Kairi vowed to stop running. She'd been doing that for months and it wasn't helping.

He smiled at her in turn, and she just felt  _happy_. That was enough motivation let whatever this was between them play out—Kairi felt the pieces would then have the space to fall where they were destined to be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was one of the more fun and nerve-wracking chapters I've written. The slow burn starts to spark here, but don't worry, we're still going nice and slow. I hope you've all enjoyed the progression and pacing; I've tried to make it natural and believable. Let me know if I've done it right and leave me with any feedback you may have.


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kairi makes a house-call and receives some unexpected news on the way. The day of the dinner with Nora Strife finally comes.

Kairi woke up the next day with Shiva sleeping dutifully at her side. The pup snored and twitched slightly in her sleep, dreaming. After Sora had walked her home last night, she spent longer than was probably healthy giving the dog a synopsis of the previous night's happenings. Kairi needed  _someone_  to talk to, and she wasn't ready to confide in Namine or Riku about anything she was feeling yet, so Shiva seemed the next best candidate.

Her dog had listened dutifully to everything Kairi had to say about the events that unfolded with Sora at the grotto. A strange part of her wished animals  _could_  talk so she could have gotten an outsider's objective opinion, but Shiva adored Sora so maybe that wouldn't have exactly worked in Kairi's favor.

Sighing, the schoolteacher reached over for her phone and saw a new message from Riku.

_**Morning, Kairi. Sora's sick so he'll be home today. Since we can't open the shop, I'm going into the city to iron out a contract with one of the restaurants there. If you happen to be in the neighborhood, drop in and embarrass him will you? He's a terrible patient but maybe he'll listen to you. See you soon.** _

His words were capped off by what she guessed was Riku and Sora's street address, highlighted in blue text.

Kairi shook her head. Sora had seemed in good health yesterday, though he  _did_  dive into the chilly water without a second thought.

She supposed it wouldn't hurt to go out and see him. Kairi was surprised how quick things had returned to manageable between the two of them yesterday. They had spent another hour in the Secret Place, just swimming and talking without another episode. Maybe it shouldn't have been surprising—Sora was easy to get along with, easy to be around. The problem stemmed from her and she knew it.

 **Yeah, I can go see him. Feel kind of bad since he was with me yesterday**  she replied.

Then again, when he'd dropped her off at home last night, he confessed that he had a late date with Yuffie. They were supposed to go to some karaoke bar. It was an odd feeling, knowing he was seeing her just a couple hours after what  _almost_  transpired between the two of them. She, of course, just told him and goodnight and wished him a good time.

Riku's answer came quickly:  _ **Not your fault. You don't have to make a special effort or anything. If you happen to be in that part of town today, just pop in and tell him to take his medicine or something.**_

Kairi rose from bed with a groan and rolled the stiffness out of her shoulders. Shiva awoke almost instantly and followed her to the bathroom, laying patiently on the rug by shower while Kairi bathed and got ready for the day.

* * *

 

Kairi followed the instructions her phone's GPS was feeding her. It took her down streets she was mostly already very familiar with; she had been here a month now, so she doubted she would become lost or anything.

Shiva trotted up front on her leash, happily sniffing streetlamp poles and the sneakers of anyone who passed by. They were in front of a familiar row of businesses and Kairi bit her lip, noticing someone she really didn't want to see loading things in the back of a silver car.

Kairi stopped, gripping the leash and tried to find an escape route that wouldn't attract attention and make things even more awkward.

But no luck. Brown eyes shifted to her and thin lips curled slightly upwards. The light breeze stirred short, jet black hair.

"Kairi. How's it going?"

Yuffie greeted her smoothly, evenly. They'd never really spent much time together. Sometimes Kairi would catch a glance of her around town. There were a few instances over the last three weeks where Sora, Riku, Namine and herself would grab dinner together in the late afternoons and they would walk Sora to the dojo where the karate instructor would meet them and the two of them would run off to whatever their time together entailed. Sora seemed to work hard at making time for both parties, but never let them converge.

"Hey, Yuffie. I'm fine. How was karaoke last night?"

The petite girl laughed, a short, barking near-scoff, but it wasn't entirely unkind. "You haven't talked to Sora today, have you?"

Kairi shook her head. "Not yet. Why?"

The other woman slammed the trunk shut, walking around from behind to lean on the driver's side door. "We didn't make it to karaoke. I honestly didn't feel up to it for once. Had him come over to my place. Truthfully, three weeks of dancing around each other was driving me crazy."

Kairi blinked at her, not really understanding. "An evening inside can be fun."

Yuffie crossed her arms in front of her chest. "That was my thought. We were kissing and things were getting…intense. It felt like after nearly a month, he was finally taking the hint that I wanted him to take me to bed."

Shiva's leash was gripped tight in Kairi's hand. She didn't want to hear this. Why would Yuffie think she wanted to hear about this?

Before she could interrupt the tale, it continued.

"—Then the moment I went for his belt, he completely slammed on the brakes. Tried to convince me that we were moving  _too fast_ , like we haven't known each other seven years and this wasn't our second time trying to make this arrangement work."

The other woman didn't sound angry, but there was an edge of bitterness, incredulity.

Kairi swallowed hard. "Why are you telling me this?"

Yuffie sighed. "You asked about last night. Last night I realized that Sora and I are incompatible. He's fun, gorgeous, and I've wanted him since high school, mostly because he doesn't make it easy and I've always liked a challenge. But I thought when we started seeing each other again that he was just playing hard to get. Cat and mouse, you know? That makes the payoff that much sweeter usually, gets me primed. But yesterday it occurred to me that he wasn't playing some flirty game: he was straight up  _unavailable_."

Kairi thought she had an idea of where this was going but chose to play along with this story since she was stuck listening to it. "And?"

"And I'm not interested in wasting my time on a man who isn't into me at least as much as I'm into him. Commitment isn't necessary and I sure as hell don't want love, but I  _do_  want to be the  _only_  thing on a guy's mind when we're together, and Sora's was in the clouds somewhere. I knew right then he wasn't going to touch me unless we had compartmentalized what we had in a nicely wrapped monogamous box, and I'm not interested in a relationship right now. I told him that if he needed pretty vows and declarations to be happy, then it was best if he was untethered from me, so he was free to pursue the kind of girl who was looking for the same things. So you can stop glaring daggers at me; I didn't tell you this to rub my conquest of your friend in your face. We never slept together. He's a hundred percent yours now, Kairi. Enjoy."

Kairi shook her head furiously, a burning heat leaping into her face. "That's not—!"

Yuffie laughed again, but this time, it was genuine. "You know, I was bullshitting that last part, but your knee-jerk reaction is more honest than anything... I'm heading out of town until Monday. I was originally planning on trying to convince Sora to come with me before that ship sailed last night, so at least don't let my sacrifice be in vain. He obviously wants a sweet, passionate, vomit inducing relationship, and you obviously want him. So do the both of you a favor and get. On. With. It."

Kairi scowled, partly in frustration and partly because Yuffie of all people had seen right through her about something that had only occurred to Kairi herself the day before. True or not, she didn't want Yuffie to be the first she admitted it to.

"You're way off base. He's my friend and I care for him, but that's all."

Yuffie shrugged, the humor easing from her demeanor. She fingered the metallic handle of her car door. "Well, you know yourself better than I do. I almost wish Sora and I were on the same page, because, God, there's something about him that makes me  _wish_  I wanted to watch movies on the sofa and talk about the future. Honestly, another couple of weeks and I might have been convinced there was something to it all. So whatever you want, make sure you don't hesitate, because there's no guarantee life will let you have the choice later."

The breath caught in Kairi's throat at Yuffie's candor. When it was laid out like that, her ambivalence seemed stupid. But there was more at play than indecision, things Yuffie couldn't know or understand.

She idly wondered if the karate instructor  _had_  wanted a real relationship, would she and Sora have worked things out? That led her on a speeding train of 'what ifs' and how  _that_  going differently would change Kairi's own friendship with him. Would she struggle with the adjustment, or would she have accepted him loving another? Would she pine away or would she let go until the curiosity and tenderness towards him faded from futility?

"T-thanks for the advice, but it isn't necessary, I promise."

Yuffie sighed in reply, twisting her car keys in her hand. She yanked on the chromatic handle and hoisted the car door open. "Have it your way. I'm gonna hit the road. I'll see you around, Kairi"

"…Bye." Kairi wasn't sure what else to say.

Shiva, who had sat obedient and quiet during the whole exchange, stood on all four legs as the car door slammed shut and the engine turned over. Kairi watched as the other woman sped off, biting her lip as the vehicle turned down a street and out of sight.

Was she really that transparent? If Yuffie could see right through her when they had barely seen each other up until today, what hope did she have of keeping any of this from Sora while she sorted herself out? He was extremely perceptive, but maybe the situation involving him would cloak whatever it was that Yuffie had picked up on. Hopefully.

She clutched Shiva's leash with one hand and the brown paper bag that she'd brought from home in the other, tugging the dog farther up the street. "Come on, let's go."

* * *

 

Sora and Riku's place wasn't hard to find—she really only needed GPS for finding which modest little home was theirs. They lived just off an adjoining street from downtown where the scattered businesses thinned and gave way to a little taste of suburbia.

The boys' home was the middle in a row of smaller homes. It was painted the palest of blues with white shutters on either side of the windows. Red fences separated their yards, jutting from the flanks of the houses.

The robotic, feminine voice of the GPS reported that Kairi had reached her destination, and she quickly tucked her phone away in her satchel bag and proceeded up the walk.

It was cute, she decided. She stepped up to their stoop but hesitated for a moment before ringing the doorbell. Shiva whined a little, almost like she somehow knew who they were here to see and was getting impatient.

The Kairi who had tried to rebuff Sora on the beach that day after speaking with Selphie reared her head. Was it really wise to be spending so much time alone with him as raw as her emotions were? Yuffie had just broken up with him the night before. Maybe he wanted time to himself.

As Kairi stood there having a last-minute debate with herself, Shiva took matters into her own hands. She barked sharply twice, and Kairi quickly knocked on the door. It would be much more embarrassing if Sora came out to check on the noise and saw her just standing outside his home.

She heard heavy footsteps and after a few short moments, the door opened and Sora was in front of her. His spiky hair was tousled, and he wore a white t-shirt and a pair of thin grey sweat pants. His nose was tinted pink and he looked groggy, but his countenance brightened considerably when he laid eyes upon her.

"Kairi? Not that I'm not happy to see you, but what are you doing here?"

He stepped out of the way so she could come in, Shiva wagging her tail happily while in tow.

Once he shut it behind her, she answered his question.

"Riku told me you weren't feeling well, so I brought you something."

Kairi passed him the brown paper bag. Sora dug inside and pulled out the sandwiches she had made him before she left.

He grinned brightly at her. "Grilled cheese, huh? These look great. I almost want to be mad at Riku for telling you to check up on me because I know him and that's exactly what he did, but I get to see you. I'll gladly sacrifice a little manly pride for that."

God, this man was a menace. Why did he choose  _now_  to say things like that to her? Two weeks ago she might have been able to manage an eyeroll and laugh it away, only hear the friendly affection in his voice, but now she was taking everything he said to heart. A terrifyingly decadent feeling sloughed down her entire body, from the top of her head all the way to the bottom of her feet.

Sora plopped down on the couch where a blue quilt was bunched up at the foot; a box of tissues sat on the coffee table. Kairi ventured a look around the home of her two friends. It oozed the fact that two men lived there. Nothing matched. The patterns and colors on all the pieces of furniture were different. The curtains on the windows were of the same set but matched nothing else in the room. There were no vapid, decorative pieces hanging on the walls, just pictures of family and the two of them with Namine. Everything was plain and understated.

Despite all that, it was warm, clean, and inviting.

"C'mon, Kairi. Sit. You're making me nervous."

Pulling away from her thoughts, she sat in a big, plush green chair. Sora was already unwrapping the plastic from around his sandwiches.

"I hope you like them. I'm no Strife, but I figured you might could use a pick-me-up."

Sora took a bite and began to chew. "Mmm. I like this Hart recipe too, though. This cold hit me like a ton of bricks when I got up this morning."

"Maybe you shouldn't have dove into that cold water right off." Kairi scolded him lightly.

Sora pouted. "I've done it before. Plus,  _you_  didn't get sick. What's up with that?"

His voice had the tell-tale nasal-y tone of someone suffering from a cold.

"I didn't dunk my entire body including my head underneath, either."

The brunette finished half of the first sandwich before carefully rewrapping it. Shiva, who had apparently went off to explore the house, suddenly appeared at Sora's feet. He helped her onto the couch with him and she immediately made herself at home in his lap.

He doted on her, mumbling sweet things that Kairi couldn't quite make out under his breath as he scratched her favorite spot behind her left ear.

She watched them for a moment before continuing. "I uh, ran into Yuffie on the way here."

Sora stopped cooing at Shiva. His fingers stilled in her beige fur.

"She told me you guys ended things last night." Kairi continued. "For what it's worth, I'm really sorry."

Kairi may not have liked them together, but she never wanted Sora hurt in the process. She had already resigned herself to accepting the woman if she made him happy.

Sora leaned back into his seat with a ragged exhale. "Yeah, thanks, Kairi. I mean, it sucks, but it really is for the best. We wanted different things; I think I knew that from the beginning." he laughed in spite of himself. "But you can't blame a guy for trying, right?"

Kairi bit her lip, remembering everything that Yuffie had told her about the night before. She'd basically invited him over for sex, but he'd wanted to continue to take things slow.

"I dunno. Maybe I'm cursed. Every girl I date that wants something more, I just don't feel that magnetism with. Then there's Yuffie, who ticked off almost every box I had but just wanted a friends with benefits thing. I'm not built for that. Sometimes I wish I was; feel like I'd save myself a lot of frustration."

Kairi picked at a loose thread on her light blue skirt. "There's nothing wrong with knowing what you want out of a relationship and not settling, Sora. One day you'll meet someone who makes you happy and is willing to be the kind of partner you need."

Sora didn't speak for a few moments, he just let her remark hang in the air between them.

"You're great, you know that? You always know the right thing to say."

He said it so evenly, so calmly, like he was commenting on the weather outside.

Kairi shook her head, feeling a strange moroseness settle over her. "You've done the same for me."

Sora hummed. "On the bright side, I don't have to break it to Mom that Yuffie and I are seeing each other again. I was going to try and tell her tomorrow at dinner. It was only a matter of time before the gossip would get back to her and I wanted her to hear about it from me before someone else. Point is kind of moot now."

"You would sabotage our meeting like that?" Kairi asked, feigning shock.

Sora chuckled. "Oh, please. She'll love you regardless, and I wanted witnesses around when I told her. She and Yuffie aren't exactly pals."

"So we're still on for dinner? You think you'll feel up to it?"

He waved off her concern. "It's just a little cold. Plus, Mom would be furious if I tried to cancel on her the day before. She's been looking forward to this dinner since I asked her a couple weeks ago."

Sora quickly snatched a tissue from the box and sneezed loudly into it, murmuring an apology. Shiva, who had fallen asleep on his lap, jumped a little at the unexpected noise. He soothingly stroked the top of her head and disposed of the soiled tissue in wastebasket he had set near his seat on the couch.

"Have you taken anything for that cold?" Kairi asked him.

"Now  _that's_  a Riku question. And yes, I did take something for it earlier. Made me drowsy. Passed out on the sofa for like an hour."

"Oh… Did I wake you up? I'm sorry, Sora. I should have called before came."

He scoffed at that. "You did wake me, but I'm glad. Wouldn't have wanted to miss seeing you. Riku tells me to take my medicine when I'm sick, Namine always fusses at me about eating and sleeping, and you…" Sora trailed off, waiting for her to fill in the blank.

"…Just want you to feel better." Kairi finished.

"See? I'd be a wreck without all of you."

Kairi smiled a little, and even though she knew it wasn't healthy, she couldn't help but compare how different from Vanitas Sora was when sick.

Being with a man for six years, she'd seen her ex in every low and high imaginable. His promotions at work, terminations, and sicknesses. Vanitas was a terrible patient like Sora, but in different ways. He hated doctors, hospitals, and just wanted to be left alone.

Vanitas had never wanted Kairi taking care of him, whereas Sora seemed to revel in the fact that he had people in his life that worried over him.

Sora must have picked up on her thoughts.

"You okay?"

Kairi shook her melancholy away. She couldn't exactly tell Sora she was actively comparing him with her ex, so she settled for telling him a half-truth. "Just thinking how differently people handle being sick."

Sora chuckled. "Riku powers through it. Tries to work and do everything for himself. Namine pretends like nothing is wrong with her and you have to force her to take it easy. I wait around for concerned parties to bring me homemade grilled cheese and remind me to take my medicine. How 'bout you?"

Kairi shrugged. "I've never really thought about it. A mixture of all three of you guys maybe? Depends on what's wrong with me."

Sora gently rubbed at Shiva's droopy ears. The dog tilted her head into the affection. "You have this thing about you. I'd want to mother hen you if you were sick."

Coming from any other man, Kairi would have chalked that up to game; a flirtatious ploy. But this was Sora—fresh off the heels of a breakup. That painful honesty of his was on display again, and while she knew he didn't intend it to make her body feel like it was being yanked inside out, that's what happened.

She made a brilliant attempt to recover. "T-that's unnecessary. Everyone knows teachers don't get sick anyway. We have superpowered immune systems."

Sora laughed at that, his warm, smooth, albeit cold-infused tone settling into the air around them. "Well, if the impossible occurs, you know who to call. I owe you grilled cheese and bedside care."

He yawned and spread out on his sofa, Shiva also resituated onto his stomach. "Don't leave or anything, unless you want to. I'm just getting comfortable."

"My schedule is clear all day." Kairi assured him.

Sora continued stroking Shiva from the crown of her head to the base of her tail.

He asked suddenly. "Isn't it ironic I ended up getting sick when I was so worried about you getting sick?" he paused a moment before continuing, as if chewing something over. "Maybe it's my punishment for…"

Sora pinched off what he was saying with a sharp inhale.

What an odd thing to leave in the air, Kairi thought. She wanted to ask him to elaborate more—to explain what he could have possibly done that warranted some cosmic retribution in the form of a mild cold, but he offered none. He quickly changed subjects and commented on how much Shiva had grown since he brought her to Kairi.

Sora took another dose of his cold and sinus syrup soon after that.

Kairi ended up staying a couple hours in all, chatting with Sora while he convalesced. Yuffie wasn't mentioned again. They talked about their jobs, their friends, and a little about the Secret Place from the day before.

Kairi didn't bring up the near-kiss and neither did Sora. It seemed he was as content to gloss over that moment in the grotto between them as she was. She almost started to wonder if she really hadn't just conjured up all of it on her own. Sora was as hard to read as ever, despite the fact that he didn't seem to have a duplicitous bone in his body.

Midway through Sora talking about fishing and being on the water, she noticed his speech slurring just a bit. His eyes became hooded and he was having trouble staying focused on their conversation. It wasn't long before she heard soft snores coming from him. He apparently didn't have a very high tolerance for even the mild cold syrup.

Odd as it may have been, she kind of wanted to see the rest of he and Riku's home. She wondered what their bedrooms were like. She found they often told stories about people that even they themselves weren't willing to tell. Were they neat? Messy? Did they like thick, light canceling curtains or did they prefer to have natural lighting in the room? Same with Namine, but Kairi wasn't going to take it upon herself to lead herself in a tour of the home—seemed to invasive to her. Maybe one day she'd get to see that side to them.

Kairi smiled at his smooth, sleepy face and got up from her seat, retrieving Shiva's leash and planting her feet at the door. She gave her dog a pointed look. Shiva made no move to get up from her comfortable position with her favorite human, even though Kairi knew Shiva understood the nonverbal cue.

Sighing, the woman crossed the room, not wanting to call the dog and wake the snoozing Sora. She was sliding her hands under the pup's belly when Sora's hand moved from its spot draped across his chest where he'd fallen asleep petting her.

His hand found hers, gripping it loosely, long fingers winding around her palm. His hand was calloused from working with them all day, yet soft and gentle in all the spots you'd want them to be. He popped open one eye and smiled at her sleepily.

"G'night, Kai. Th'nk you for visitin' me. S'ya tom'row…" he slurred with a husky, drowsy tongue.

Kairi was tempted to remind him it wasn't anywhere near nighttime, but his warm hand squeezing hers with surprising agency for someone conked out on cold medicine gave her pause. It felt nice. Comfortable. Nerve-wracking.

He'd held her hand before, dragging her through town and even the day before on the beach as he led her to the Secret Place. However, this was different. Or maybe she was.

Sora's eye slid closed again and his grasp on her hand became lax. Kairi used the opportunity to gather Shiva in her arms. He looked like he'd already fallen back asleep by the time she reached the door. She turned the knob lock behind her as she left the house.

* * *

 

Xion called later that day they had an hour-long conversation. She told her that Roxas really wanted to see her and was going to take off work the weekend after next so they could come for a visit. Kairi didn't tell her sister about Sora making her realize that a part of her still missed Vanitas, even as she was catching feelings for the brunette himself.

As much as she kept this from Xion to avoid her teasing, she knew her sister would put that aside and talk her through it if Kairi asked, but Kairi wasn't ready to tell anyone about how much of a disaster she was, much less her over-protective sister who would tell her over-protective brother-in-law first chance she got. Normally just a lecture from them wouldn't faze her, but they were going to be here soon, and she'd rather not sour the visit.

So Kairi settled for letting her genuine excitement at their impending visit wash over her. Xion entrusted her with calling Gran at some point and trying to convince her to come with them, since the older woman had told Xion "no" right off the bat.

Sora also texted her, apologizing for falling asleep during her house call yesterday and reminding her that he would be there around six-thirty to take her to his mother's for dinner.

There was still a bit of apprehension about meeting Nora Strife, even more than there was when she had agreed to it weeks ago. Since the events in the grotto Friday had stripped the truth away from the lies, being with Sora was a heady cocktail of emotions. It just felt off-kilter that he was letting her deeper into his world while she was keeping a portion of hers safely concealed from him

He didn't deserve the dishonesty; Kairi hoped she found her answers soon so she would know what exactly she was going to have to come to terms with. Which was worse, she wondered—catching feelings for a friend who wasn't interested in you, or realizing you were merely using them as an emotional scapegoat for the relationship before them?

Kairi sat at her kitchen table, finalizing lesson plans as the thoughts swirled. She almost wished she wasn't as attached to Sora as she was; a decision would have been easy if there wasn't an incredible guy and three incredible friendships caught in the crossfire.

Riku and Namine were all but a package deal. The four of them had become close, but at the end of the day, she'd only known them a month. She was sure they wouldn't take kindly to Kairi handling this badly and hurting Sora. At the very least, things would become awkward.

But things were better. She felt a strange peace. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that he and Yuffie were no longer seeing each other, maybe she was getting closer to acceptance of what had been building up between them. Kairi had spent a lot of Friday night feeling awkward about the fact that she'd almost kissed someone else's boyfriend. Despite the fact that she wasn't particularly fond of that someone else, it was still wrong. At least  _some_  of the guilt had been lifted away.

The kindergarten teacher hit 'send' on the email, sending off her lesson plans to Aerith for the coming week. Kairi then felt a strange scratching against her pant leg. She looked down to see Shiva pawing at her to get her attention. She closed her computer and got up from her seat to take the dog out for a walk.

* * *

 

Six o'clock came faster than she thought it would, despite the fact that it was a lazy Sunday and she hadn't done much besides lesson plans and grading the few assignments she'd assigned for the group of five-year-olds that week. She nailed down grades for the show and tell exercise they had done, which was mostly a participation assessment.

Kairi had worried just a bit over how to dress. A dinner at Sora's childhood home didn't seem like a formal thing, but she didn't know what Nora herself would be expecting. If she was anything like her son, Kairi doubted she was expected to dress anything more than casual.

She finally settled for a comfortable dress—not unlike how she dressed for work during the week. It was pale blue and light, knee-length; perfect for the island heat. She wore the lightest white cardigan she could find to go with the thin strapped outfit, just in case.

There was a strong knock at the door a few minutes later. It was a quarter past six; Sora must have decided to leave early. Shiva jumped from her cushy bed and ran to the door, prancing in a circle, barking. Kairi went to answer but was surprised that when she opened her home to the visitor, there was a distinct lack of Sora.

Riku stood there instead, offering one of his rare small smiles. She must not have hidden her confusion well, because his expression flattened upon seeing her.

"Oh, sorry. Should I have called first? Sora was coming to get you, but I talked him into letting me come instead. I just wanted to…" he sighed, clearing his throat. "I should have probably just given it to you later. You might have rather went with Sora."

 _Given what to me later?_  she wondered.

It was then that she noticed something large, rectangular and wrapped in thick brown wrapping paper cradled underneath his arm. More pressing than that, however, was the fact she'd given Riku the impression that she wasn't happy to see him.

Kairi shook her head vigorously. She liked spending time with Sora, true, but that didn't mean she was disappointed by the change. She and Riku hadn't had near as many one-on-one chats lately; not nearly as many as she'd had with Namine and Sora. Truthfully, she felt glad from the reprieve of all the heft between herself and Riku's best friend.

"No! That's not it at all. I'm really happy to see you. I just wasn't expecting it. Come in."

He stepped in and she closed the door behind him. As all must do upon entering her apartment, he greeted Shiva—who was doing laps around his feet— with a well-placed scratch behind the ears.

Once he stood back to his feet, he held out the parcel to her. It was relatively heavy but thin—only maybe two inches thick. She gingerly began to tear the heavy paper where it was taped. It looked like Riku had wrapped the thing himself. It was tight, secure, but not very ornate.

"It's partly a late welcome/housewarming gift and partly a thank you gift for looking in on Sora yesterday." her friend explained as the sound of ripping paper filled the room. "I know he and Nam already gave you something, and I knew I didn't want to be the one to just phone it in by buying something, even though I'm terrible at this sort of thing."

Kairi let the scraps fall to the floor and in her hands was a hand-painted picture. It looked surprisingly similar to their paopu tree spot on the beach where the sunset was most spectacular. The artwork wasn't a masterclass, but it was good. Kairi's eyes widened as she looked from the painting to Riku, who she swore looked like was blushing.

"Did you paint this yourself?" she asked in wonder, looking at the bristle lines in the colorful brushstrokes.

"Y-yeah. I've actually been having trouble sleeping lately. Restless, I guess. Namine told me I should do something like painting to relax at night, so I figured instead of buying you something, I'd paint that spot on the beach. It actually did help my mind rest at night."

"This is… really wonderful. I had no clue you were an artist too." Kairi smiled at him.

Riku shook his head. "Me, an artist? No way. But I have picked up a few things from Namine. Having an artist for a best friend for the past eighteen years has its perks. When Namine had art projects in high school and college, Sora and I would come over and paint with her just to spend time together. Neither of us are big into art, but it was better than not seeing her at all."

Kairi admired the swirling colors of the sherbet sunset and the vibrant blue of the ebbing sea. This must have taken Riku a while to complete, and despite his insistence that he was no artist, she could tell that great effort went into the project. She hugged the frame close to her chest.

"I love it, Riku. You're so sweet. As soon as I get home tonight, I'm going to hang it on the wall in my bedroom."

Riku cast his gaze to the floor, but she was certain it was to disguise the pink tint to his cheeks. Kairi giggled and set her framed Riku piece on the kitchen table. He met her indigo eyes with his green ones at the sound of her mirth. He looked sheepish at first but broke into a chuckle.

"It does make a pretty good paperweight, huh? I know it's dumb, handing you some crummy art piece like I'm one of your students, but I really wanted it to be personalized like Sora and Namine's gift to you. I'm not fun to be around like they are, so I just wanted to do something to show you how much I've come to value your friendship. The movie nights and the lunches, they've been really great—thanks for powering through all my hangups to get to know me anyway."

Kairi pushed his shoulder firmly. "Stop it, Riku. You're a wonderful person; don't talk like I'm doing you some sort of favor by spending time with you. I've benefited from our friendship just as much as you have, maybe even more. The painting is beautiful I said I love it."

She wasn't mad, not really. Riku was hard on himself unjustly. The painting really was nice; a little rough when it came to technique, but that only added to its charm and her appreciation.

Riku scratched the back of his head sheepishly, clearly flushed. "Sorry. That  _did_  sound kind of rude, didn't it? It's just easy to fall back on old habits. I've uh, been told I'm emotionally stunted."

She wondered by who, but decided that was a question for another time. She knew it couldn't be Sora or Namine.

Truthfully, Kairi was the same, albeit maybe not as severely as Riku. She had a tendency to keep a low opinion of herself to stay humble and keep her expectations in check. Success tasted all the sweeter when she wasn't expecting it. Maybe she didn't have the right to scold him in that way, but she thought Riku was great and she disliked hearing him talk badly about himself.

"Well, whoever said that was wrong. Give yourself some credit, please. I know Namine and Sora would tell you the same." she offered him her arm. "Now, if you don't mind, I believe you were supposed to be my dinner escort."

Riku laughed, genuine and warm, and Kairi decided he looked best when his walls were down. He looped his arm with hers and they left for Nora's Strife's house.

* * *

 

The conversation on the way to dinner had been lively and light. Nora didn't live very far—no one in this tiny seaside community really did. She knew their destination the moment that it came into view—Namine stood on the stoop of the cute home, leaning against a support. She smiled as they approached, pushing off her spot to intercept them.

"Well, aren't you two a vision" the blonde teased, smoothing the wrinkles in her black skirt.

Kairi gave her a perplexed look at first, then remembered the strong arm still interlocked with her own. Before she could speak, Riku was already extending his other arm out.

"You don't have to be jealous, you know."

Namine huffed, but there was a smile on her face as she accepted his other arm. "Me, jealous? Never. Just as long as you keep one arm vacant for me, I'll be fine."

Riku's green eyes twinkled in a way Kairi wasn't used to seeing. "Always."

He walked them to porch before releasing the both of them.

Kairi spoke up first. "What were you doing outside?"

Namine clicked her tongue. "I was helping with the last-minute cooking but the oven going made the kitchen a little too toasty for me. Sora looked like he had everything under control, so I stepped out. Just wanted some air."

Kairi inhaled deeply and swore she could smell something wonderfully savory wafting from the welcoming Strife residence. Just as she was about to open her mouth to ask what they were having, the front door opened slightly and a face popped out from the space.

"Nam, it's hot, why don't you come inside and wait for—" Sora stopped what he was saying as he saw the two new arrivals. He was dressed nicely, but not overly so. Just a pair of dark jeans and a red button up tucked neatly beneath his waistband.

He walked all the way out, beaming. "Riku! Kairi! I'm so happy you're here! Mom'll be happy to see both of you too."

She could hear a slight congestion still lingering in his voice, but he seemed like he was feeling much better than he had the day before. He stopped in front of the red-head, pocketing his hands. Kairi returned his smile. "I'm excited to finally meet her. Maybe she'll show some embarrassing photos of baby Sora."

The color drained from the fisherman's face. "Oh man, I didn't even think of that. I really hope she doesn't."

Namine quirked a brow. "Oh, why not, Sora? They're so precious, Kairi. I love this one she's really fond of showing where Sora is running around the house completely nak—"

"Speaking of Mom, she wanted me to tell you that dinner is ready." Sora interrupted quickly in just the nick of time. "Let's all go inside, yeah?"

Amused by the rare occurrence of Sora being flustered, Kairi followed the other three inside. Her shoulder brushed against the brunette's, and Kairi wasn't sure if it was by accident or if one of them had moved in closer to the other.

* * *

 

Nora Strife's home was warm and inviting, not unlike Sora's from the day before. Various pictures of her son, Riku, and Namine alike adorned the walls. There were more of people she didn't recognize, as well as floral prints. The furniture and the den were tastefully decorated and immaculately color coordinated.

A wonderfully briny smell hit her nostrils, as well as a hint of lemon.

Her flats clacked quietly against the tile as she noticed a woman with light brownish-blonde hair facing away from her while standing in front of the oven.

"Mom, Riku and Kairi are here." Sora informed her from beside them.

The older woman turned to face the four of them. Her face broke out into an easy smile, familiar blue eyes crinkling at the corners.

She was pretty and looked to be in her late forties. Her eyes and smile had clearly been passed on to her son, and Kairi's heart felt light at her bright countenance. She had a pan of what looked to be baked fish of some sort in her hands, and set it down on an iron rest in the middle of the large dining room table.

She shucked her oven mitts and tossed placed them neatly nearby. She crossed the room to greet them, starting with Riku, leaning in and pecking him on the cheek. Motherly attention.

"You look handsome tonight." she complimented. "How have you been, Riku?"

"Thanks, Ms. Strife. I've been good. Same as always." he answered.

Nora squeezed his shoulder comfortingly then her attention shifted to Kairi herself. Despite the fact that she seemed a very approachable person, Kairi couldn't help the beat of anxiety that rumbled briefly inside. Just as she was about to speak her own greeting to the woman, Nora pulled her into an embrace without any warning.

"I hope you don't mind, dear. We hug around here, and Sora speaks so highly of you that I feel like I already know you."

Kairi honestly hadn't been expecting such quick affection. She wasn't opposed to it, but it was a little startling. She probably shouldn't have been surprised, considering that this was the woman who raised the most cheerful and friendly man she'd ever met.

"I-it's so good to meet you. Sora has been so kind to me since I arrived. Riku and Namine, too."

The calming scent of lavender was apparent as she returned the embrace. She wasn't sure if it was from Nora's shampoo or perfume, but it helped to settle her a bit. When she was finally released, Kairi could see the easy smile on the matriarch hadn't faltered.

"That's great. I'm happy you've seemed to settle in so well on our little island." Nora replied, pulling away. "Well, now that we're all acquainted, let's eat."

* * *

 

 

Dinner proved to be delicious. It was baked salmon with lemon. Nora had purchased the fish from the market a couple of days prior specifically for dinner that night.

"There's a really great place I go to; two really wonderful men sell their catch there." she said with a wink. It was clear she had bought it from Riku the day she and Sora had went to the Secret Place.

"It's delicious, Ms. Strife." Namine told her emphatically, taking a bite of the asparagus served as a side. The other three echoed her with contented hums of their own.

Nora had already finished and was nursing her iced tea. "I'm glad you like it. Fresh fish needs little else than just a touch of seasoning." she then turned her attention to Sora. "And I'm happy you decided to invite Kairi instead of Yuffie, honey."

The brunette immediately stopped his chewing, dropping his fork noisily into his place. "…W-what? Why would I have brought Yuffie?"

Nora gave her son a pointed look. "Give me a little credit. We live in a tight-knit community. Did you really think no one saw you and her around town? I went to Wakka's for breakfast Wednesday—he was making casual conversation and said the two of you had been there together for lunch a few times over the past few weeks."

Kairi could hear the chide her in her voice, but it wasn't nagging.

Sora pinched the cloth napkin by his hand, rubbing it between his fingers as if antsy. "Well, that's over now. Ended Friday, actually, so you don't have to worry about having to deal with her."

The was a stifling moment of silence around the table. Not tense or awkward, just poignant. At least, that's how it felt to Kairi. She'd seen the start and end of Sora's relationship with Yuffie, listened to his reluctance to let his mother find out, his insecurities about where it was going. She also thought of the complexity their breakup brought to her own relationship with Sora. He displayed such nonchalance about it, but she knew part of him had to be hurting if she, an outsider, was feeling this conflicted.

"Don't be that way." Nora's gaze was stern, but she corrected him softly. "While I won't pretend that I was thrilled the first time you started seeing her, you're a grown man capable of making your own decisions and I respect your autonomy. I always wish the best for you with the girls you choose to see. You know that." she paused a moment, as if waiting for her words to sink in. "How are you feeling?"

Sora shrugged, retrieving his fork and pushing his remaining food around. It looked pretty child-like. "I'm fine. It's not like we were together long enough for it to get serious. She's a great girl, we just… expected different things out of our relationship, or lack thereof, I guess."

The middle-aged woman hummed, the sound a proprietor of a dozen different sentiments. "You have wonderful friends, maybe focus on that for a bit. The rest will probably happen when you least anticipate it."

Sora once told Kairi that Nora didn't approve of his ideas about love, but she seemed plenty supportive in this moment. Whether she was trying to be comforting to her son in the wake of his breakup or didn't want to lecture him in front of everyone at dinner, Kairi couldn't say.

Sora nodded his head mechanically, acknowledging her advice. Kairi didn't think he looked very convinced by her assurances. "Yeah, thanks, Mom."

Riku cleared his throat. "Well, the salmon catch Friday turned out really well."

Kairi agreed, piggybacking off his attempt at a subject change. "It did. You have your work and you have us. The rest always has a way of falling into place. That's how—"

She stopped herself abruptly before the thought finished. She was going to say,  _That's how it was when it met Vanitas_ , but found she didn't want to mention her ex in front of Nora, which would inevitably end up with her having to explain that she had moved here on a whim to run from her own relationship troubles.

And her failed relationship certainly wasn't some paragon example of patience in love paying off. It was for over half a decade; now it seemed more like a cautionary tale.

"T-that's how it works out sometimes, you know?" she corrected quickly, flashing a small smile to Sora. He returned it with one of his own, albeit much less radiant than she was used to.

He returned to his meal, unusually quiet, and the idle chatter between the other dinner guests picked back up with much lighter topics.

* * *

 

After dinner all four of them offered to help clean up, but Nora wouldn't hear of it.

"It's getting late; you all have work tomorrow. I'll take care of it. I just really enjoyed being surrounded by my favorite people."

Kairi stood at the entry way to the Strife's cozy home as its owner fluttered among all of them, hugging and wishing them goodnight.

She saved Kairi for last, her crinkly eyed smile returning. She resembled Sora so very much in that moment.

"It was especially wonderful meeting you, Kairi. Sora only has good things to say about you, though admittedly not enough to satisfy my curiosity. The rare girlfriend that made it to the 'meeting mom' stage notwithstanding, you're the first female friend he's brought home since Namine, yet I had to twist his arm to invite you."

Sora crossed his arms with a huff, turning from the scene. Kairi couldn't help but think the scowl on his face out of place and comical.

"—Just know that my home is always open." she continued. "You don't have to wait for an invitation, you don't even have to wait for Sora to bring you. Just come on over when you get the urge. I have photos of all three of them, you know. I was always given copies of Namine's school pictures after she and Sora became close, but she moved here when she was a little older so most of hers are just cute. We could have a nice cup of coffee and look through them… Ooh, or maybe a glass of wine instead. That would be even better."

Sora made a sound of agony, presumably over the idea of Kairi and his mother drinking and giggling over pictures of him in his formative years. Riku got significantly paler, and Namine just shrugged noncommittally.

Nora laughed heartily in response. "Oh, we  _have_  to do it now, if only to drive my son crazy."

The woman's mirth was infectious; Kairi couldn't help but return it. She wasn't sure if she'd ever take Nora up on her offer, but she was at least relieved that she hadn't made a bad first impression.

"Dinner was wonderful and I'm happy I got to finally meet you." the schoolteacher echoed.

The final wave of goodbyes were said, and Sora immediately made it clear that he wanted to walk her home.

* * *

 

He was unusually quiet on the way back. Kairi wondered if he wasn't truly bothered by his mother's teasing.

"Sora, I'm not really going to go see your mom to laugh at your baby photos." she attempted to break the ice with a little humor.

Her companion looked up, blinking at her, as if broken from a trance. "Oh, don't worry about that. You can if you want. I guess I'm a little too old to get upset by that stuff."

"But you seem distracted; I assumed it was about that. What's wrong?"

He continued to trudge on, not speaking at first, scratching his carefully maintained spiky hair. "Nothing really, it's just… I think I kinda wanted my breakup with Yuffie to be quieter than that. I hadn't even gotten a chance to tell Nam, and yet I l blurted it out to the whole table tonight. But since Mom brought it up, I felt like I had to. But if I'm being really honest, I didn't want her to know I'd fumbled another one."

"Hey." Kairi spoke to him softly. "You didn't fumble. Yuffie's the one that let you go. She wasn't ready for a grown-up relationship. It'll always be her loss."

She echoed what he told her over a month ago when she'd confided in him about Vanitas and the truth about why she'd moved to Destiny Islands in the first place.

He smiled at her. "How do you do it? Separate from someone you'd shared your life with for so long and still be so great on the other side?" he asked her, smiling. "Most of my relationships never made it to six months and I'm totally lost right now. Yet, here you are on the other side of heartbreak, amazing as always."

She blanched even though she very much wanted to believe she wasn't a total disaster, but he only knew half the story. She wondered how differently he would view her if he knew she wasn't really over Vanitas at all. She didn't even have it together well enough to discern her own feelings where Sora himself was concerned.

"Not quite on the other side," she admitted, "but I'm trying."

His cobalt eyes glazed with something unfamiliar, and Kairi felt like he was seeing right through her. The conversation stilted for a while after that, the pair of them focusing on the walk.

They arrived at her building and Sora walked her up to the second floor like he had so many other nights. He leaned against her doorframe as she dug her keys from her satchel bag.

"Just promise me we'll get through it together, 'kay?" he told her. "Not sure if I could do this without you at this point. I feel like… I dunno. Having you with me just makes me feel better."

Kairi swallowed hard, heart fluttering traitorously beneath her breast. "Two  _is_  better than one, right?"

There came that flash of teeth, blue eyes twinkling. "Exactly."

The breeze picked up just the slightest bit. Sora sniffed, fighting the last remnants of his short-lived cold.

"Mom loved you, by the way." he said conversationally. "I could tell. Not that I had any doubt she would. I'm really happy you agreed to come."

She had felt a mutual kinship with the older woman. She felt more at ease and appreciated one less layer of mystery between her and Sora.

"Me too. It's really great how she cares for all three of you." Kairi fingered her keys. She had friends growing up, but nothing like what Sora, Riku and Namine shared. Nora seemed a surrogate mother to the latter two, even though they shared no actual blood.

"That includes you now, too." Sora reminded her gently. He then exhaled sharply, almost reluctantly, shifting from his spot against the door. "Well, I guess I better let you get some sleep. Give Shiva my love, alright?"

Kairi nodded. "Goodnight, Sora."

"Sleep tight, Kairi."

He spared one last playful grin before he finally made to leave, lumbering down the steps behind her. Kairi hastily twisted her key in the lock and entered her apartment.

I wasn't until after she'd hung Riku's painting on the wall right above the dresser that displayed Sora and Namie's gifts that Kairi remembered what Sora had said that night on the  _Oathkeeper._ She only needed to make some new memories to give her the strength to leave the old ones behind.

Kairi felt like she was moving in the right direction, even if the process was agonizingly slow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delayed update. Work has been pretty busy for me and most of my free-time was split between writing this chapter and completing Final Fantasy VII for the first time. Fire Emblem: Three Houses interrupted both of those, but it is a phenomenal game and I highly, highly recommend it to anyone who owns a Nintendo Switch. Oh, and since we have no clue what Sora's mother's name actually is, I named her after Nora Estheim from FFXIII, just in case anyone was wondering where that came from and didn't make the connection. Hope you all enjoyed this long chapter and continued bond-building. Things will get more exciting as we go forward, promise. As usual, you're all the best. Leave me with any feedback you may have.


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kairi runs into an unexpected meeting while going out for tea and finally tells her friends about her sister and brother-in-law's impending visit.

It was a sleepy Thursday in the early evening and Kairi had no plans. That usually didn't bother her, but it was proving to be a busy week. Spring break was the third week of May and April only had a few days left. The students were getting just a bit restless and so was she. Xion and Roxas would be arriving next weekend and she had yet to phone her grandmother about possibly coming with them. She hadn't told anyone about her family coming to visit yet, either. There was no particular reason why, she just hadn't.

Kairi decided to give the little café a few blocks from her apartment a try, wanting to get out of the suffocating four walls for a little while.

* * *

 

When Kairi wrested open the door to Destiny Cafe, the earthy, pungent aroma of coffee beans and baked treats caressed her senses immediately. Crossing the impeccably clean, mood-lit establishment as the low hum of quiet conversation lulled in the background, she made to step up to the counter to order her tea when a voice called out to her.

"Hey, Kairi!"

The woman turned, and to her surprise, she saw someone she never would have anticipated gesturing for her to join them from a four-chair table nestled comfortably in the corner. Of course, with the odd turn of events lately, maybe she shouldn't have been surprised.

Almost uncannily, she found herself running into Yuffie yet again. This time, however, Kairi felt no dread or emotions being pulled in two different directions. She approached the table as she was asked, and the petite woman urged her to sit.

"That's twice in just under two weeks. We've got to stop meeting like this." Yuffie joked as Kairi took her seat. The karate master seemed much more at ease than the last time they spoke that the teacher couldn't help the quick upturn of the left corner of her mouth.

"Seems like some sort of record, doesn't it?" Kairi asked, folding her hands on the table's smooth, polished wood surface after taking her seat in the cushioned chair. It surprised even herself how un-awkward seeing Sora's ex was. "So… how was your weekend away? How have you been?"

Yuffie set down the panini she had been eating and wiped her mouth with a napkin now that they were speaking face-to-face. "Good and good. What brings you here tonight?"

"The earl grey and me being a little antsy, truthfully. You?"

Yuffie hummed, taking a small drink of aromatic cappuccino from the large porcelain cup that sat in front of her. "I'm actually here with someone. He should be back in a sec; he went to the restroom."

That's when she noticed the seat beside her had a steaming cup of what appeared to be hot chocolate in front of it, marking where its owner had been sitting.

Before Kairi could further the conversation, heavy footsteps were making their approach and she looked up to find another familiar face meandering towards the table.

" _Sora_?"

Sora grinned, "Hey, Kairi. I didn't know you liked this place."

She'd expected to meet one of Yuffie's  _friends_ , not Sora. He'd mentioned he had plans earlier, but she never imagined that meant meeting up with the girl he'd parted ways with almost a week ago.

"This is my first time here." Kairi quickly collected herself and put her questions aside for the moment. "Not sure if I like it yet."

Sora looked like he was about to reply when Yuffie waved a dismissive hand. "Oi, Sora. I interrupted Kairi before she could order. Go get her a cup of earl grey, will you?"

Kairi made to shake her head, not sure how she felt about him being pressured to buy her tea, even though it was most likely one of the most inexpensive things on the menu. "No, that's not really—"

But before she could say anything more, Sora had already turned smartly on his heels and wandered to the counter where the barista was taking orders.

When Sora was out of earshot, Yuffie resumed their conversation. "I just wanted to get him away from the table for a moment so I could talk to you. He called me here to make amends, that's all." she explained quickly. "He said he felt like things ended kind of abruptly and a little skewed for two people who claim to be friends. I wanted you to know that before drawing any kind of wrong conclusions."

Kairi couldn't lie—she did feel a measure of relief in spite of herself.

She wrung her hands out on top of the table. "I appreciate it, but it's really not necessary. You don't owe me an explanation. I think during our last talk, I came off as a little terse, and I'm sorry for that."

Yuffie shrugged. "We were both a little uptight that day. I came off kinda bitchy too. Despite what you may have heard, I'm not really like that."

All the bitterness Kairi had harbored to the woman dissipated. Maybe they were different people, but did that mean they couldn't find common ground? If Sora could move on from what had happened with Yuffie into true friendship, couldn't Kairi at least make an effort?

She didn't believe the attractive, free-spirited woman had intended to hurt Sora, and maybe there was a little fault on both sides. Relationships could very rarely be compressed into black and white sizzle reels when searching for the reason things didn't work out.

"How about we start over, then?" Kairi suggested. "Sora sees you as a friend, and I think I'd like that for us, too."

Yuffie quirked a curious brow at first, but it smoothed back down in the next moment. "Why the hell not? I have so few female friends. Might be just what I need."

Kairi felt a weight lift off her shoulders. It felt good to let by-gones be by-gones. Maybe one day she'd pluck up the courage to try something similar with Selphie, though the woman from Radiant Garden wasn't sure if she was at that level of ' _getting over it_ ' yet.

Sora arrived back at their table a moment later, carrying Kairi's tea and a slice of key lime pie. He settled down next to her, placing the hot cup in front of her and the pastry between them both.

"Share with me?" he asked Kairi, nudging her shoulder. "I get this every time I come here."

The red-head made to decline. "Oh, no thanks. I really don't need it."

Sora made a noise of discontent, nearly pouting. "Aww, come on. It's really good. Please?"

Kairi's eyes shot up to meet Yuffie's brown ones as if asking for help, but the martial artist just focused on her panini like it was the most interesting thing in the world.

Kairi couldn't say no to Sora when he looked at her like that, so she picked up her fork, resigning herself to her defeat.

"Get that top part with all the meringue, it's great." he suggested, countenance brightening considerably after having successfully convinced her to share the dessert.

Kairi took his advice, cutting off a forkful that was packed with meringue, and she swore Yuffie was smirking around her sandwich as if she'd been proved right about something.

* * *

 

Kairi walked home on her own after finishing her tea with Sora and Yuffie. Sora had tried to get her to let the two of them to walk her there since it was so close, but she declined. Yuffie insisted that she didn't need an escort either, so Sora eventually relented, and everyone went their separate ways.

Miracle of all miracles, Kairi had enjoyed her time with  _both_  of them.

It wasn't terribly long after she was home and curled on her bed surrounded by school plans that her phone vibrated loudly from her bedside table. She shifted to reach for the device, answering it and balancing it on her thigh. She enabled the in-call speaker.

"Hey," the other voice filtered through her end.

Kairi typed away on her computer. "Hey, Sora"

"I uh… just wanted to explain what you saw earlier."

Her fingers stilled over the keys. "I saw two friends having coffee and hot chocolate at a café."

She heard Sora sigh in relief. "Yeah, that's exactly what it was… I just didn't want you to think anything else."

"I know you wouldn't play around with her, Sora. I think it's really great that you wanted to make sure she was doing okay with everything that happened."

There was a short pause on the line. "… Yeah, I feel like I handled Selphie badly. She can barely look at me anymore, much less be anything resembling my friend. I really didn't want that to be the case with Yuffie."

Kairi closed her computer and set it aside. "I wouldn't beat yourself up over that. I think Selphie has other things going on—maybe one day she'll be ready to reconcile."

"Maybe." he echoed, but it wasn't exactly confident. "Well, I just wanted to let you know about things with Yuffie. I think it was really great of you to stay and talk with her. Just because things didn't work out with us, I don't want you to think she did anything wrong by me."

She laid down on her pillow. "I know, I get it. It's easy to see why you wanted to try again; she's a lot of fun."

"Mhmm." Sora agreed. "Well, I'll let you go. Sleep tight, Kai. I'll see you later."

"Night, Sora."

The line went quiet after that. Kairi laid there in the stillness of her bedroom for a bit, contemplating. She really was happy for Sora. She loved that he always tried his best to do right by people, but he and Yuffie had the advantage of being friends before trying to be something more. He hoped for the best but kept his expectations grounded in reality.

Kairi realized that she would probably never have such a reconciliation with Vanitas. Even if she were to miraculously get over him that night, there was still too much history for them to ever go back. They could be friends in name, but getting coffee and talking about new happenings in their lives? She couldn't fathom it.

She'd rarely dated in high school, and none of her couple of 'boyfriends' had been anything resembling serious. Vanitas had been her first real  _everything_ : her first real kiss, her first time being in love, her first—

Kairi exhaled shakily through her nose, trying to push away the memories that pervaded her thoughts. Things were getting better, but she wasn't completely free. Maybe one day she'd be at the place where she didn't actively miss Vanitas, but right now it seemed impossible to let go of everything the last six years had stood for and accomplish something similar to what Sora and Yuffie had.

But she was willing to try.

* * *

 

The next day, Riku joined herself and Namine for lunch like he and Sora had on so many afternoons at this point. None of them felt like ordering out for their food, so they'd agreed to make it a 'bring from home' day. Riku tucked into some kind of casserole Sora had made the night before, Namine had made herself a vibrantly colorful salad, and Kairi picked at leftover spaghetti.

"How was the catch this morning?" Kairi turned to Riku as he was thoroughly masticating a bite of casserole.

It sounded like such awkward small talk, but it was actually the opposite. They were so comfortable around each other at this point that the chit chat wasn't bothersome. They spoke when they felt like it and ate quietly when they didn't.

Truthfully, she was so used to hearing Sora and Riku talk about the fishing trade that she'd developed an actual interest in it. Sora was more adept at the actual fishing and networking, while Riku had a brain for business and book-balancing. It fascinated her to hear about the ins and outs.

"It was a little small this morning, honestly. I'm hoping it picks up enough for a good late afternoon catch. Sora is probably close to selling out of what I brought this morning."

Namine set her fork down. "Speaking of Sora, he's been in good spirits all week. I'm glad last weekend didn't get him down. I hate that things didn't work out for him"

Talking about what happened with Yuffie, most likely.

Kairi was glad to hear that from Namine, who was particularly protective of Sora and had an old gripe with Yuffie over something that happened with a friend in high school.

"Finally putting the Leon stuff to bed?" Riku ventured.

Namine crossed her arms. "That was nearly eight years ago, 'Ku. It's  _been_  water under the bridge, but I did let it inform my opinion of her when she was involved with Sora. I mean that they've both handled it well, that's all."

"I saw them out together last night." Kairi added. "Mending fences, you know. I actually stayed and had tea with them—they make good friends."

She had debating telling the others. She only meant it as a point of admiration for the other two, but she didn't want to come off as gossipy. But she was dealing with Sora's best friends in the world; they of all people wouldn't take it the wrong way.

Riku cocked his head thoughtfully to the side and Namine looked surprised.

"Really?" the blonde's eyebrows nearly soared into her bangs. "Well, honestly, I'm glad. Like I said, I have no personal problem with her. Long as she's fair to Sora I'm happy."

Riku's shrugged. "It shouldn't shock me. Sora could make friends with a lampshade if he wanted."

Kairi twirled a bite of pasta around her fork in a neat little bundle, thinking. The trio went quiet again, all lunching quietly.

"My sister and her husband are coming for a visit next weekend." she told them after a few bites into the intermission of conversation. "Maybe my grandmother too, I'm not sure yet."

Namine smiled. "That's great, Kairi. I know how much you've missed them. Will we get to meet them?"

"I sure hope so. I don't see any reason why not, unless you just didn't want to."

Riku leans forward a little. "No, I'm game. I think's it's a great idea. Are they planning on staying the entire weekend?

"Yeah, they'll stay with me if I have anything to say about it."

Namine added. "You wouldn't mind us all getting together, would you? As long as it doesn't mess with their plans. It's nothing exciting, but maybe we could have movie night at my apartment Saturday and they could come. Let them pick the movie."

Kairi hummed. "I think they'd like that. I would, too."

* * *

 

Back in class, Kairi thought it would be a good idea to let the kids do a fun activity together. She had a set of 20-piece puzzles and broke them up into groups of 4 so they could help each other complete it. There was a low hum of chatter as her students dutifully went about their tasks, happy for the chance to be doing something not as rigid or structured as their usual classwork.

Of course, she watched them like hawks. Part of the exercise was getting to see how they problem solved with other children, which Kairi was particularly interested. Teamwork was crucial—very few adults ever got to work totally alone all the time. People skills were necessary.

Truthfully, Kairi had Noctis in mind when she orchestrated the assignment. The boy was grudging when she announced their groups, and as they sat on the floor with the puzzle spread out, she could see that he definitely preferred to work alone. He glared down at the floor at the pieces scattered around, trying to reason where they all fit on the board. Noct picked up the pieces with purpose, almost always laying them in their proper spots. He rolled his eyes and chided his teammates that tried to force incompatible pieces together.

Kairi frowned; he was being curt, but not doing anything overtly rude that she could chastise. The other children in the group seemed to pick up on the idea that he didn't require their assistance, so Noctis placed the last few pieces by himself and turned to trade with the group beside them that had also finished. Kairi was impressed by that, truthfully; she hadn't even thought to instruct them to swap and keep working

Sometimes happy accidents happened. However, she was very conflicted by the fact that Noctis was working, but not being part of a team like she'd hoped. His behavior wasn't a big deal at face value, and maybe if she hadn't met him outside of work that day and had the vague understanding that his home life wasn't normal, she might not have even felt the need to butt it.

But she did know his home life appeared to be filled with workaholic adults. She kept thinking back to that day at the beach when his fishing trip with his caretaker was ruined by something work-related with his father. Noctis had seemed so at ease and almost happy while chatting with Sora and herself. She wanted to see some of that same spirit in class with the other children.

* * *

 

School was letting out for the day and she filtered the children out to take them to the area where they would be picked up at. The line was quiet and orderly, so Kairi took the opportunity to walk a bit slower so she could fall in line with little Noctis.

"You seem to like working on the puzzles, Noct," she commented conversationally.

Noctis, who had been staring at his shoes as he walked, answered without looking up. "Yeah, I do them a lot at home."

"Alone?"

It was an educated guess. She could tell he enjoyed puzzles by the intense focus he placed upon his task. It seemed to follow that maybe he'd been so keen to strongarm his group into letting him do most of the work because he did all the work at home.

The boy nodded, finally looking up. "I mean, yeah. When dad is home, he's working, and when Dad isn't home, Cor is on the phone or his computer and doesn't have the time."

That familiar sadness boiled low in Kairi's belly. "I see… Do you have any interesting spring break plans? It's only a couple weeks away."

Noctis seemed to brighten at that a bit. "Yeah, actually! Cor said we could go fishing the first chance we get that week! Dad's also gonna try to be home so maybe he'll take me."

"Really? That sounds exciting!"

Kairi smiled at how pumped Noctis seemed. Maybe she would wait until after the break to have the talk with Mr. Caelum. Maybe a week of fun would lift Noctis' spirits and he'd come back to class recharged and ready to really engage with the other children.

"How bout you, Ms. Hart? Got any plans with Mister Bi—err, Mister Sora?"

Noct knew she didn't approve of the 'Mister Big-Foot' nickname, so he made sure to only use it when talking directly to Sora, and she appreciated that.

"Well, I'm not sure. Haven't really made any plans besides the schoolwork I have to keep up with." She told him. "But we'll probably see each other." a pause. "Mr. Riku and Ms. Fleuret, too." she added the two names quickly.

The children in her class were well aware of her friendship with the other three adults. They saw Riku and Sora enough during lunch to know, and, of course, Namine was their beloved art teacher.

Noctis' expression soured. "You should enjoy your break, Ms. Hart. Don't spend the whole time working like my dad."

The comparison cut Kairi like a knife, though she knew he didn't mean it that way. She just hated that the boy was so evidently wanting to spend more time with his father. If she thought for a second that Mr. Caelum was abusive, she could just be angry and go from there, but it was pretty clear to Kairi that Noctis' father loved him… He was just  _busy_. All the time. And that weighted heavy on her heart.

"Don't worry," the teacher assured him. "I'll make plenty of time to relax for sure."

The boy looked pleased with her answer. The line of children halted as they reached their destination and Kairi's conversation with Noctis stilted.

* * *

 

"Are you sure you won't come, Gran? I don't want you to overtax yourself, but I'd love you to see the beach."

Kairi leaned against the counter in her kitchen. She had finally decided to put the call in to her grandmother about trying to convince her to come along with Roxas and Xion on their holiday. Her efforts hadn't bore any fruit.

Her grandmother sighed mournfully over the line. "I know, dear. And I'd love to come, but that is the second weekend of the month and you know I always do work at the shelter on the second weekend of the month."

Kairi frowned. That was true. Her grandmother was a retired social worker, but she still tried to keep her passion for people going in other ways.

"Don't pout, dear." Gran chided, somehow knowing that was exactly what Kairi was doing, despite the fact that they're weren't actually face-to-face. "You only have 2 months of school left. Maybe I'll come for a visit when summer starts, that way we'll have more time together and you won't have any excuse to work. I'd love to meet that group of friends you keep telling me about, too."

Kairi smiled. "I'd love that, Gran. Or if you don't feel up to coming here, I'll go to Radiant Garden. I just want to see you."

"I do too, sweetie. I've missed you—in a couple of weeks, it'll be two whole months since you left."

Kairi bit her lip. That was true. As much as she loved her new life here, a part of her would always want to be close to her family. "I miss you too, Gran."

The two women talked for a little longer after that, and hearing her voice just made Kairi feel _good_. Even though she wasn't coming to the island next weekend, just talking to the woman she'd admired her whole life would be enough for now. She'd just have to see her grandmother another time. Phone calls made the distance seem smaller; she was grateful for that at least.

Xxx

Kairi cut the water and pulled the curtain of her shower back. The steam swirled around the sweltering tiled room as she emerged, grabbing a towel and drying off. Her phone lit up from its spot near the sink, vibrating quietly. She peered over at the notification. It was a message from Sora.

_**Hey. Can I come over for a bit?** _

She blinked at the device for a moment. It wasn't often he asked to come over unless he had a very specific reason, or it was movie night. Not that she minded at all, it was just unusual.

Kairi dried a finger off on her towel thoroughly so she could reply.

 _sure_.

She dried off and hurried to make herself presentable, not waiting for a reply. The steam funneled out of the bathroom and into the hall when she opened the door and scurried across the way to her room to redress. Despite the fact that it was only half past seven at night, Kairi had laid out pajamas for herself. She stared down at the thin shorts and shirt she'd picked out and decided it maybe wasn't the best choice for company, especially of the male-friend-I-might-have-suppressed-feelings-for variety.

After a few minutes of rifling through her dresser, Kairi decided on t-shirt and an old pair of jeans. It looked kind of frumpy, but maybe being embarrassed in front of him would help her keep her emotions in check. She padded back to the bathroom and had just finished brushing her damp hair when she heard heavy knocking at her door.

Shiva yipped from the other room, not really barking, but letting Kairi know there was someone at the door.

The woman finished what she was doing and made for her apartment door, opening it.

As she expected, Sora stood there looking cheerful as ever. He held a cardboard cup holder with two drinks in one hand and a small bag in the other.

"Hiya, Kai." He greeted as Kairi stepped aside to let him in. Shiva was there as always, sniffing his pantleg and whimpering for his attention. Sora toed off his sneakers at the door as was the tradition on movie night.

He set his gifts on the coffee table and sat down on the sofa, waiting for her to return from closing up behind him.

"So what's up?" she asked, curling her feet beneath her as she settled into her recliner.

"I was just walking past the café and thought you'd like a nice cup of tea to start off your Friday night." Sora nudged the small bag towards her too. "Oh, and another slice of pie. This time you get your own."

Kairi laughed. "What, none for you?" she teased.

"Nah, I ate mine on the way here."

She got a comical image of Sora eating a whole slice of pie on the walk here. He reached over and offered her one of the warm take-out cups. She accepted the gift. "Well then, thank you for the pie."

But Sora was only paying half attention at what she was saying. He inhaled slowly through his nose, holding the breath hostage for a moment before releasing.

"You smell like strawberries." he said in wonder.

Heat burst beneath the skin of her cheeks. She must have felt as hot as the tea she was holding. "I-it's my shampoo. I uh, just got out the shower."

"I love strawberries."

She knew it was harmless chatter, but she was glad she was biting the inside of her bottom lip when he'd said it, because otherwise she was sure she would have audibly gasped.

Instead Kairi laughed, the sounding nervous and shaky at the same time. "Heh… T-they're a solid fruit…"

She felt herself cringe at her own weak attempt to save face. As if to rescue her, Shiva stood up on her hind legs and pawed at Sora's knee. He leaned down to help her onto the sofa, cooing and mumbling praise at her. His hand reached over to the bag he brought in and fished out a dog treat—some kind of beef stick.

Shiva's little tail started wagging madly.

"I didn't forget about my best girl," he gushed to the animal. His gaze turned to Kairi. "I hope you don't mind. Seemed unfair to leave her out. Can she have it?"

Kairi nodded eagerly. "Of course."

She was thrilled for the subject change, and was heart-warmed by the fact that Sora had been concerned about a dog feeling slighted. He opened the treat and offered it to Shiva, who happily took it and trotted to the other end of the couch to chew on her beef stick in peace. Kairi tried to focus on the soft sound of puppy nomming to steady herself again.

"Oh, wow, Kairi. You okay? I just realized how red you are. You're not getting sick, are ya?" Sora's brows wrinkled in concern.

She'd never get over Vanitas. Sora would kill her first. She would die of embarrassment. Her Gran would be so disappointed. Roxas and Xion would have to buy a pine box for her when they came to visit.

Kairi's fingers instinctively flew to her cheeks. Her skin was feverish to the touch, but she knew very well she wasn't running a temperature. "No! I feel great! It's just an… after shower flush! You know how that is. Makes your blood run hot and all that."

"Oh, well as long as you're sure. I don't want you to push yourself too hard these last couple weeks before your spring vacation."

She felt itchy in her own skin. It was a strange mix of dread and exhilaration. Her excuses were paper-thin, but Sora seemed to buy it. Of course he did. He held no suspicion for anyone. He had no clue of the clandestine things she was keeping close to her heart for her own protection.

Sora genuinely thought she was a good person. Shame bloom through her gut like a gnarled poison root as she imagined how disappointed he would be in her if he ever found out what kind of person she  _really_  was. In a self-loathing kind of way, she  _hoped_  he realized it soon. It would probably be better if he cut her off completely and she was forced to let him live his life in peace. Better for him, for her. The Vanitas-shaped hole dug into her heart would still be a problem, but at least she wouldn't be dragging her complications into Sora's world.

But she knew she couldn't stay away from him. He really was too wonderful, and she really was too weak.

"I heard your sister is coming next week." Sora's smooth voice broke through her vicious cycle of pity. He was smiling at her, and just like that, the tempest of emotions whipping inside her calmed.

That boy was a double-edged sword.

"Yeah, she is. Roxas is coming with her." Kairi affirmed, normality returning to her in waves. "Gran won't be able to make it, though."

"That's too bad. I know you miss her. But at least you'll get to see Xion. I'm excited. You met my mom, now I get to meet your family. I don't want to impose on anything, but if they don't have anything planned one afternoon or something, I think it'd be cool if we all got together."

Xion had an abiding love of teasing Kairi about her relationship—or lack thereof—with Sora. She'd be lying if she said she wasn't nervous about the two of them meeting, but she'd been feeling like a bumbling schoolgirl lately with her behavior where Sora was concerned. She really didn't want to give her insecurities any more power than they already had.

"That'd be great. We were thinking of a movie night. I'm sure they'd like to go to the beach while they're here. I'm sure they'd like all of you do join."

Sora reached over and ruffled Shiva's floppy ears, who keened with satisfaction as she continued to eat her beef stick and enjoy the attention. "Sounds good. Just let me know when things get closer, 'kay?"

Kairi nodded at him, taking a sip from her now lukewarm tea. Sora followed her example, taking a long gulp of what she assumed was hot chocolate. He wasn't big on either tea or coffee, and that's what he'd had at the café with Yuffie the day before.

He ended up draining the whole thing in one go, sighing happily, leaning back against the back of the couch. Seeing a vacant spot on his lap, Shiva moved to eat her snack against his thigh.

"I think I'm going to wait after spring break to make a decision about what to do about Noctis." Kairi confided. "He was telling me today that his father has plans for the family over the holiday. Maybe time together will put a spark in him."

Sora's blue eyes became almost liquid, like the ocean. "I hope so. He needs to have a little fun with his dad. It'll do him some good."

"I want that to be the case. His grades are fine, but I can tell he's lonely. I don't want to come across as the busybody schoolteacher, but it's hard to watch. He's not an outcast, I just…" she exhaled heavily. "I don't know. I feel like he never gets to go out and do kid things, but part of me feels like I may be way overstepping."

"Don't think that for one second. You care. Don't feel bad for that,  _ever_. That's what—"

He said it suddenly, with all the ferocity of a bullet ripping from a gun. His mouth snapped shut before he could finish, a steadying breath filtering from his nose.

"It's one of the things I admire most about you." Sora continued after a pause, quieter.

Kairi's mouth went dry. His compliment sat like a bitter pill against her tongue. It was like accepting a gift from a friend that you knew really couldn't afford to get you anything.

But Sora was so earnest, and she knew she wouldn't get anywhere trying to protest.

"I just want everything to turn out well for him."

"It will. And I know you'll do everything you can to help him."

Sora's faith in her was a grounding force. She felt better about the situation, like maybe she could rise to the compliments he paid her.

Kairi nursed the tea in her hands. Sora sunk into his seat again, scratching Shiva behind the ears. The pup had finished her beef stick and was licking her paws in satisfaction.

"Well, I'm gonna head home." he told her finally, getting up from his seat and crossing the room to reach her front door. He was slipping back into his sneakers when she spoke up.

"Thanks, Sora. For the tea and everything."

He scratched the back of his spiky head, smiling in that bashful way of his. "You're welcome. We're still on for movie night tomorrow, right?"

"Definitely." Kairi affirmed. "Don't forget it's your pick."

"I won't. Don't forget about your dessert, either."

She reached over for the bag, realizing she hadn't even looked inside this whole time. She peeked. Inside was a delicate strawberry shortcake visible through its clear plastic container.

Sora laughed, the sound a rich like the hot chocolate he had been drinking. "Smells almost as good as your shampoo. Sometimes things connect in ways we don't expect, huh?"

It was something small… unimportant in the grand scheme of things that her shampoo and dessert contained the scent and taste of a fruit that he loved. Yet, there was something funny about it, comforting and concerning, just enough to give her pause to think.

When he left and she was alone in the apartment again, she decided she would use the strawberry shampoo again tomorrow before he came over for movie night. And for once, she didn't think too hard about it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> None of what happened in this was in the outline I made for this story after chapter 3 whatsoever. The story made some executive decisions and here we are, but on the bright side, you all got this early. This chapter was originally supposed to be entirely composed of the Xion/Roxas visit, but I didn't want this chapter to be 10k words with these scenes and those combined. Kairi's family meeting everyone is important and deserves its own chapter. This update is filler-ish in a way, but I felt they were necessary moments for the big picture. Plus, I didn't think you all would be opposed to a little extra Sokai fluff. Next chapter is Xion's visit and it shouldn't take long because it's going to be very plot-oriented and fun. Hope you all enjoyed this one. I really love hearing from all of you guys, so leave a comment with anything you're thinking or want to say about this story. Thanks for reading!


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